Aztec architecture: Difference between revisions

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Aztec palaces consisted of three main types: Administrative palaces, mansions of wealthy nobles, and pleasure palaces and retreats. Administrative palaces served as the ___location for local government, as well as the residences of local rulers. The focal point of these structures was a large courtyard near the entrance of the building, surrounded by suites that served various purposes.<ref name="ens9004-infd.mendoza.edu.ar"/> "The form of the tecpan is dominated by a large courtyard, opening onto the community plaza, which is best seen as a kind of mega-courtyard for the community," according to Susan Evans.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Evans |first1=Susan |title=Aztec Palaces and Other Elite Residential Architecture |url=https://ens9004-infd.mendoza.edu.ar/sitio/historia-america-latina/upload/05-%20EVANS%20&%20PILLSBURY%20-%20LIBRO%20-%20Palaces%20of%20the%20Ancient%20New%20World.pdf#page=16 |website=Mendoza.edu |publisher=Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection |access-date=7 March 2023 |page=23}}</ref> The mansions of wealthy nobles were used solely as residences, and were constructed in accordance with Aztec sumptuary laws.<ref name="Aztec Palaces and Other Elite Resid">{{cite web |last1=Evans |first1=Susan |title=Aztec Palaces and Other Elite Residential Architecture |url=https://ens9004-infd.mendoza.edu.ar/sitio/historia-america-latina/upload/05-%20EVANS%20&%20PILLSBURY%20-%20LIBRO%20-%20Palaces%20of%20the%20Ancient%20New%20World.pdf#page=16 |website=Mendoza.edu |publisher=Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection |access-date=7 March 2023 |page=18}}</ref> Pleasure palaces and retreats served many purposes, ranging from add-on structures at religious shrines to more opulent structures, such as [[Nezahualcoyotl (tlatoani)|Nezahualcoyotl's]] baths, located at [[Texcotzingo]].<ref name="Aztec Palaces and Other Elite Resid"/>

Unfortunately,Substantial expertsevidence onlyhas havebeen substantial evidencefound for only a few dozen tecpans, out of the hundreds that once stood throughout the Aztec Empire. Most of these confirmed finds are administrative tecpans.<ref name="Aztec Palaces and Other Elite Resid"/>

Pyramid-temples, or [[teocalli]], were religious buildings whose construction was sponsored by the government to emphasize the religious significance of the area, as well as its imperial might.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Aguilar-Moreno |first1=Manuel |title=Handbook to Life in the Aztec World |date=2007 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-533083-0 |page=220 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZseasJq3WzEC&dq=aztec+architectural+style&pg=PR5 |access-date=7 March 2023}}</ref> According to Gary Feinman, Mesoamerican temples were typically rectangular structures with one entrance, located on one of its long sides. The structure of the temple was generally an elevated or shortened pyramid mound. They often consisted of two or more rooms, with an outer and inner chamber, the inner chamber being seen as more sacred.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Feinman |first1=Gary |editor-first=Michael V. |editor-last=Fox |title=Temple in Society |chapter=Mesoamerican Temples |chapter-url=https://www.academia.edu/455529 |year=1988 |isbn=978-0-931464-38-6 |via=[[Academia.edu]] |pages=67–82}}</ref>