Aztec ruins indicate much more grandeur than quality. Their architecture was less refined than that of the Mayans. Thousands of artisans worked continuously to build and maintain the temples and palaces. Small temples rose atop tall pyramids of earth and stone, with staircases leading to their portals. Stone images of the gods, usually monstrous, and reliefs with symbolic designs, were placed in temples and squares.
The most famous Aztec sculpture is the Stone of the Sun, wrongly known as the Aztec Stone Calendar. It is in the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City. With a diameter of 3.7 m, the stone has in the center the image of the sun god, showing the Aztec days of the week and Aztec versions of world history, as well as myths and prophecies.
The Aztecs were skilled artisans. They dyed cotton, made pottery and ornaments from gold and silver, and carved many fine jewels in jade.
Aztec Civilization
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