Molluscs were both useful and symbolic in the Mexica empire
Aztec women painted their faces a beautiful yellow
We tell you which museums hold Aztec objects...
Hear the old- fashioned sound of tortilla making
Cocoa beans make perfect small change!
Is the chacmool anything to do with the ballgame?
Many plants and animals had more than one meaning...
Are the Aztec and Maya daysigns the same?
Just how were Aztec weapons used in practice?
Home talk among the Aztecs revolved around anything but blood...
Did Aztec rulers possess divine powers?
Forerunners of recorded music from ancient Mexico?
Pilgrimages to sacred locations - a tradition both ancient and modern
The ancient art of spear throwing in Mexico
Where to turn for good introductions to Mexica writing
There are 6 surviving pre-Hispanic Mixtec codices
Amaizing - the story of maize in Mexico
Beautiful portraits of Mexica Gods...
Colours had several layers of meaning in ancient Mexico...
Control of lake navigation was crucial to the Aztecs
General Aztecs Maya Tocuaro Kids Contact 20 Oct 2020/4 Flower
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Dr. Mark Van Stone

What does the hand gesture of the Maize God [on the Maya dish with the earth-turtle] mean? asked Putney High Junior School GDST. Read what Dr. Mark Van Stone had to say.

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Marriage Alliances in Mesoamerica NEW Click the flag for a Spanish translation
‘Nearly everything you were taught about Aztec “sacrifice” is wrong’
The Aztecs and Cannibalism
Sacrifice in the pre-Hispanic Mixtec codices Click the flag for a Spanish translation
‘Azteken’ exhibition, Stuttgart
La Llorona (1)
La Llorona (2)
History of British and Mexican querns
Stages of childhood in Mesoamerica
The ocarina in Mesoamerica
The Concept of the Wheel in Ancient Mesoamerica Click the flag for a Spanish translation
The Mexica approach to alcohol
Mexica (Aztec) Human Sacrifice: New Perspectives Click the flag for a Spanish translation
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Households and Daily Life in Mesoamerica
The Voladores ceremony
Birth and death as metaphors (1)
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Chanting in Mesoamerica Click the flag for a Spanish translation
Witchcraft and Sorcery in Ancient Mexico
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The Aztecs, patolli and gambling
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Aztec running
The art of Aztec mourning
What lies underneath Aztec sculpture?
Caves as Sacred Space in Ancient Mesoamerica
Mesoamerican Copper
Lightning in Mesoamerica
Dr. H.B. Nicholson - ‘Grandfather’ of Aztecs Studies
Games and Other Amusements of the Ancient Mesoamericans
Especial Birds in the Americas
Aztec Masks
Nahua Moral Philosophy
The Aztecs and Lake Navigation Click the flag for a Spanish translation
The Ancient Secret of Pre-Hispanic Jewellery Click the flag for a Spanish translation
‘What was the Aztecs’ most prized possession?’
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IN THE NEWS: femicide in Mexico (2)
IN THE NEWS: (ritual) decapitation
Water in the Valley of Mexico
A modern Nahua pilgrimage
The Deep Roots of Aztec Sculpture
Mexica Weaponry Click the flag for a Spanish translation
Aztec Philosophy
Aztec Women
Vienna’s Mesoamerican Featherworks
Did Aztec rulers possess divine powers?
The skilled use of conch shell in mosaics
Mexico’s Faked Prehistory
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How Aztec poetry works
How did Mesoamericans envision the cosmos?
Portrait of a Collection: National Museum of Mexico, 1865
Clean Aztecs, Dirty Spaniards
Templo Mayor animation
The Aztecs and the atlatl
Aztec Manners
The Aztecs have been called many things... Click the flag for a Spanish translation
“There is no such thing as ‘Human Sacrifice’” Click the flag for a Spanish translation
Hare vs Rabbit in mythology Click the flag for a Spanish translation
The Skywatchers of Cahokia
How ‘Eagle Man’ has changed Britain’s museums
Aztec Poetry (1): Intro Click the flag for a Spanish translation
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Reconstructing Aztec Super Glues
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Aztecs and the power of lament
Mexico’s long-distance running tradition
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Quotes on the Aztecs
More quotes on the Aztecs
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‘Aztec’ crystal skulls
Turquoise Mosaics book launched
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‘The Heart’ exhibition
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Mexican Bank Notes
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Colossal serpent
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Tezcatlipoca Symposium Click the flag for a Spanish translation
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Bristol and the New World
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3 Mexican football fans

Aztecs, ballgames and logos...

Mexico have come pretty close (quarter finals) to winning the World Cup, and were the first country to host the FIFA series twice - in 1970 and again in 1986, each time in the famous ‘Estadio Azteca’ or Aztec Stadium in Mexico City. (Written/compiled by Ian Mursell/Mexicolore)

Official FIFA World Cup emblem, Mexico 1986
Official FIFA World Cup emblem, Mexico 1986

The Aztec Stadium, designed by Pedro Ramírez Vázquez (who also designed Mexico City’s celebrated National Anthropology Museum), was built in 1966, and is the second largest (capacity 114,000) football stadium in the world. It was in the stadium during the 1986 World Cup that the world famous ‘Mexican Wave’ first broke onto the international scene.

Mexico City’s Aztec Stadium
Mexico City’s Aztec Stadium (Click on image to enlarge)

For decades the Mexican team have sported a strip with a striking design based on the ultimate Aztec icon - the Sunstone or Calendar Stone. The ‘ghosted’ version in grey became very popular around the 2006 World Cup in Germany.

Mexico’s 1998 World Cup shirt design based on the Calendar Stone
Mexico’s 1998 World Cup shirt design based on the Calendar Stone (Click on image to enlarge)
Mexicans learn to love football from before they’re born!
Mexicans learn to love football from before they’re born! (Click on image to enlarge)
More on the Aztec Calendar Stone
More on the ancient Mesoamerican ballgame
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Here's what others have said:

Mexicolore replies: Thanks for asking, George. We’re afraid we don’t know, at present. We’ll try and find out for you...
Mexicolore replies: There is a link on this page, Alma, to a page on our site about the pre-Hispanic ballgame, ullamaliztli! Click on ‘More on the ancient Mesoamerican ballgame’...