https://tenochtitlan.thomaskole.nl/index.html

[language]English*Espanol*Nahuatlahtolli
[cover_hire]
                            a portrait of
                        [tenochtitlan][glyph]
       a 3D reconstruction of the capital of the Aztec Empire

The year is 1518. Mexico-Tenochtitlan, once an unassuming settlement
in the middle of Lake Texcoco, now a bustling metropolis. It is the
capital of an empire ruling over, and receiving tribute from, more
than 5 million people. Tenochtitlan is home to 200.000 farmers,
artisans, merchants, soldiers, priests and aristocrats. At this time,
it is one of the largest cities in the world.

Today, we call this city Ciudad de Mexico - Mexico City.

Not much is left of the old Aztec - or Mexica - capital Tenochtitlan.
What did this city, raised from the lake bed by hand, look like?
Using historical and archeological sources, and the expertise of
many, I have tried to faithfully bring this iconic city to life.

[map_world] [map_texcoc]
[living_tel]Tenochtitlan and Popocatepetl[?] [slider_lef][slider_rig]

Living Metropolis

The world looked very different 500 years ago. As you view these
images, imagine the smell of salty air and smoked peppers. Imagine
the sound of people speaking Nahuatl, a canoe gliding through the
canals, and birds chirping in the trees. Imagine the warmth of the
sun on your skin. The people around you are dressed in white cotton
and work their fields, cook, trade, and practice their craft in the
shade of trees and awnings.

[org_fromso]A full view of the city[?] [slider_lef][slider_rig]

Organized Society

The grid layout shows that Tenochtitlan is a city of hierarchy.
Neighborhoods are planned in advance, each with its own markets,
schools, and places of worship. Canals are maintained to allow for
easy transport of goods and people. Walkways with bridges weave the
city together.

[arch_sunri]Templo Mayor at sunrise[?] [slider_lef][slider_rig]

Architecture

Large buildings stand out against the single-story houses, from the
massive twin-temple pyramids in the centers, to the smaller temples
and shrines in neighborhood community centers. The Sacred Precinct,
with the Templo Mayor, forms the epicenter of the city. Next to it is
the palace of Emperor Motecuhzoma Xocoyotzin, among various other
temples, schools, gardens, and a zoo.

[tlatelolco]The Sacred Precinct of Tlatelolco[?] [slider_lef]
[slider_rig]

Tlatelolco

Tenochtitlan has a twin city, Tlatelolco, a little to the north. Both
cities grew and are now merged, with Tlatelolco subordinate to
Tenochtitlan.
The city houses an important market, where merchants sell exotic
goods from all over the Empire, and beyond.

[two_temple]Two Great Temples, two volcanoes[?] [slider_lef]
[slider_rig]

The Basin

The Basin of Mexico is surrounded by volcanoes - most famously
Popocatepetl and Iztaccihuatl. The slopes guide rain and spring water
down to form a salty inland sea. Even at its lowest point, the basin
is well over 2000 meters above sea level.

[heavy_rain]Rain over Tenochtitlan[?] [slider_lef][slider_rig]

The Lake

Building a city in a lake means a permanent battle against water.
A complex system of causeways, canals, locks, and a 16 kilometer dike
allows the Mexica to flush the city with fresh water from the
mountains.
This compartmentalizing makes it so that the city is surrounded by
brackish water, keeping the saltier water on the east side of the
lake. An aqueduct from the Chapultepec hills provides the city with
drinking water.

[chinampa_f]Thick early-morning fog over the fields[?] [slider_lef]
[slider_rig]

Chinampas

The Mexica create fertile plots of farmland by staking out pieces of
the shallow lake and filling them with dirt and rubble. These
chinampas are used to grow maize, beans, squash, peppers, and
flowers.
This is what allowed the city to grow, both in area and in
population.

[pano_west_]Tlacopan, Azcapotzalco and other cities[?] [slider_lef]
[slider_rig]

Shores

The basin has been inhabited for millennia, many towns and cities
have been built across the shores of the lake. Tenochtitlan, Tlacopan
and Tetzcoco rule over the empire, as the Triple Alliance.
The city is connected to the mainland with causeways leading to
Tlacopan, Azcapuzalco, Tepeyacac, and beyond.

Past and present

Mexico City is built on top of the ruins of Tenochtitlan. The temples
were demolished and the stones were repurposed after the Spanish
conquest. The lake has been drained, the canals made way for streets.
Almost nothing of the original city remains. Using drone photography,
we can compare the then and now. What similarities do you see?

Swipe across the images to compare.

[compare_west_a_hd] [compare_west_b_hd] Looking west, towards
Chapultepec[?] [?]


[compare_popo_a_hd] [compare_popo_b_hd] A full view of the island[?] [?]


[compare_zocalo_a_hd] [compare_zocalo_b_hd] Downtown[?] [?]


[compare_cerro_a_hd] [compare_cerro_b_hd] From Cerro de la Estrella [?]
[?]


[newfire_to]A view from the Cerro de la Estrella[?] [slider_lef]
[slider_rig]

New Fire

To mark the ending of the 52-year cycle, all fires in the Basin of
Mexico are extinguished and then lit again from a single source, in
what is called the New Fire Ceremony.
The one in 1507 would be the last one held before the conquest.

Thanks

This project is the result of over 1.5 years of research and
iteration.
It would not have been possible without the input of the following
people:

Paul Guinan
Michael E. Smith
Ian Mursell (mexicolore.co.uk)
Gerardo Gutierrez
Barbara E. Mundy
Tomas Filsinger
Patricia Murrieta-Flores
Mariana Favila Vazquez
Jose Luis de Rojas
Israel Hinojosa Balino
Enrique Ortiz
@Lycaones
Gina Torres-Alves
Oswaldo Morales Napoles
Aldo Sauza
---------------------------------------------------------------------

Aerial Photography of modern-day Mexico City by Andres Semo Garcia (
@semo_dron)
---------------------------------------------------------------------

Spanish and Central Nahuatl translation by Rodrigo Ortega Acoltzi
---------------------------------------------------------------------

The Tenochtitlan glyph was done by Mi Corazon Mexica

License

These images are released under CC BY 4.0 (Creative Commons
Attribution 4.0 International).
In short, this means that you can use these images freely, as long as
they are correctly attributed.
---------------------------------------------------------------------

For the images of Tenochtitlan, the author, Thomas Kole must be
credited.

For the images of modern-day Mexico City, Andres Semo Garcia
(SemoDron) must be credited.
---------------------------------------------------------------------

Made using open-source software. Blender, Gimp and Darktable
---------------------------------------------------------------------

For additional usage questions, or for more info about the project,
contact tenochtitlan@thomaskole.nl



a portrait of Tenochtitlan * Thomas Kole, 2023