Ancient History Encyclopedia, 03 May 2018. [12]. A fresh-faced and untested young man would have been growing a lock of hair on the back of his head since the age of ten, to be shorn off when he took his first captive. Researchers have identified at least 227 individuals as sacrificial victims, and it is believed that this mass sacrifice may have been carried out to appease deities who were supposedly bringing extreme rainfall weather conditions upon the Chimú. Conducted at specially dedicated temples on the top of large pyramids such as at Tenochtitlan, Texcoco and Tlacopan, sacrifices were most often carried out by stretching the victim over a special stone, cutting open the chest and removing the heart using an obsidian or flint knife. They were dressed in fine clothing and jewelry and escorted to Cusco to meet the emperor where a feast was held in their honor. The majority of the human sacrifices the Aztecs used were actually warriors that were captured in battle. There are methods to everything in life, and the Aztecs methods to life just happen to be through human sacrifice. As the journey was extremely long and arduous, especially so for the younger, coca leaves were fed to them to aid them in their breathing so as to allow them to reach the burial site alive. Du kan ændre dine valg når som helst i Dine kontrolfunktioner til beskyttelse af private oplysninger. Aztec Sacrifice. This is not to say that commoners fighting would not take captives or would not be rewarded for taking captives, but we need to keep in mind that the expectation, and ability, to do so was a burden that was geared much more towards the elites in Aztec society. Often enough, however, it was nobles and captured warriors whose hearts fed the gods. It was even believed that the most handsome of the Aztec people were chosen for this service. One notable deviation from the foreknowledge of death seems to occur with the festival most cited as having a "virgin sacrifice," Ochpanitzli. All were then sacrificed, with Huixtocihuatl going last. There are also skulls suggestive of child sacrifice dating to the Maya periods. Their gods had sacrificed themselves to bring the world into existence, so humanity must continue the sacrifices to ensure the world remained sustained. Please note that content linked from this page may have different licensing terms. Be happy." By dying as a sacrifice, they honored the gods. All of these things did happen but it is important to remember that for the Aztecs the act of sacrifice - of which human sacrifice was only a part - was a strictly ritualised process which gave the highest possible honour to the gods and was regarded as a necessity to ensure mankind’s continued prosperity. Others have said the Aztec leaders used human sacrifice to terrorize their population and the nearby cultures. The Aztec Empire: Society, Politics, Religion, and Agriculture. So yes, the bulk of those sacrificed were captives taken in battle. And according to Aztec beliefs, it was essential to provide the gods with nourishment in order to prevent the end of the world, which explains why sacrifices were an integral part of their lives. 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