Tenochtitlan was a city-state located on the site of modern Mexico City. The legend is that one day, the God of the sun and war, Huitzilopochtli, told the Mexica Indians (aka Aztecs) to found a city Tenochtitlan in the place where they see the picture, the eagle on the cactus will hold a snake in its claws. This opportunity was given to them after 130 years of wandering in the southern lands of North America, when on one of the islands of Lake Texcoco the Indians saw an eagle holding a snake in its claws.

Tenochtitlan - capital of the Aztecs

According to a more realistic version, the Mexica tribe came to the Valley of Mexico from the north - from lands that now belong to the United States. At that time, the entire territory of the valley was divided between local tribes, and, naturally, none of them wanted to share the land with newcomers. After consulting, the local leaders decided to give the newcomers an uninhabited island on Lake Texcoco. There were a lot of snakes on the island, so the locals expected that the newcomers on the island would have a hard time. Arriving on the island, the Aztecs saw that there were many snakes living on it, and they were very happy about this, since snakes were their food. The Aztecs saw an eagle holding a snake in its paws as a good omen. According to the Aztecs, this symbolized the triumph of good over evil. Thus, around 1325, Texcoco was founded on an island in the middle of the salt lake. Tenochtitlan(translated from Aztec as “house of the cactus rock”), and in 1337, north of Tenochtitlan, the separated part of the tribe founded the satellite city of Tlatelolco.

The city grew rapidly: 7.5 square km and 100,000 inhabitants - these were its growth rates approximately 100 years after its founding. And over the next 100 years, the city grew to 13.5 square km, which housed up to 212,500 inhabitants (according to other sources, up to 350,000 and even up to 500,000 inhabitants). The Spanish governor appointed by Cortez spoke of the city's population being one million.
The city had many canals and lakes, so it was often necessary to get around using boats, as in modern Venice. Tenochtitlan itself was surrounded by countless dams and bridges that protected it from watercourses.

Tenochtitlan was divided into four quarters: Teopan, Moyotlan, Quepopan and Aztacalco. In the middle of the city there was a ritual center surrounded by the protective wall of Coatepantli (Snake Wall). The city was built up with temples, schools, service buildings and houses. Due to the loose soil, the buildings were erected on long piles.

City of Tenochtitlan: attractions

There were many interesting architectural structures in the city. City of Tenochtitlan decorate:
Great Pyramid. The pyramid-shaped temple reached a height of 45 meters. Its façade was facing strictly west. A wide double staircase, consisting of 114 steps, led to the top of the temple, where two smaller temples were located on the platform. These are temples of two dominant gods: Tlaloc - the god of rain and Huitzilopochtli - the god of the sun and war. Subsequently, after the Great Pyramid was destroyed, the stone blocks of the temple were used by the Spaniards to erect a Catholic cathedral - the largest in all of America. The Great Pyramid has gone through several stages of excavation during its modern history. During recent research, many stone figurines and masks of Tlaloc were discovered, however, archaeologists were unable to find images of Huitzilopochtli. According to Spanish chronicles, his images were made from a special material - dough and seeds, and, therefore, had long since decomposed. Currently open to the public and located on the Zocalo, to the right of the Mexico City Cathedral.

Tlatoani Palace. The palace complex consisted of a dozen stone one-story buildings. In appearance, the complex was a collection of external and internal courtyards, as well as premises for various purposes. So, in the buildings, in addition to the dwellings of the nobility and the premises of Tlatoani, there were court rooms and council meetings. In total, the palace consisted of about three hundred rooms. The Spaniards wrote in their chronicles that one could easily get lost on the territory of the palace complex. All entrances and exits to the palace complex, of which there were about 20, were connected to several patios. The palace was located outside the ritual center. The palace complex, like the ancient capital of America itself, had its own infrastructure. At his disposal were: an arsenal, a courthouse, council buildings, a weaving workshop where women sewed clothes for the emperor and his family, and jewelers? metal craftsmen, and other artisans. About five hundred servants looked after the animals and birds alone.

In addition to the Tlatoani Palace, the Axayacatl Palace was located on the territory of the city. The back of the building faced the main pyramid of the Aztec capital. The palace was huge and served as a treasury and also a temple. The palace of Ashayacatl had no fewer halls and rooms than the imperial residence. The rooms of the palace could easily accommodate several thousand visitors. The most notable room of the palace was the walled treasury, created by the father of Montezuma II, and subsequently plundered by the Spaniards.
Tzompantli. It was an amphitheater-shaped building with rows of skulls set with their teeth facing outwards. Tzompantli was located near the main gate of the Aztec pyramid. At the end of the building there were two towers, erected from building mixtures and stones. At the top of the towers there were pins on which the skulls of defeated warriors were mounted. Also on the ritual square of the capital of the Aztec state there was a building in the form of a tower. The entrance to it was guarded by two stone structures in the form of heads with open mouths. Knives for sacrifices, cauldrons and dishes for cooking sacrificial meat, and other ceremonial utensils were kept inside the building.

The main market of the city. The market area was surrounded by arcades and accommodated from 25 to 50 thousand visitors. The market was so large that its noise could be heard throughout the entire Aztec capital. The market was open seven days a week. A separate place was allocated for each type of trade, and the most important goods were provided with their own trading floors. The Aztecs had no money and the function of the volute was performed by cocoa beans, corn, slaves and other important goods.
City dams. Tenochtitlan was surrounded on all sides by Lake Texcoco. However, the construction of dams was not so much a forced measure as an opportunity to make life easier. The dams were built gradually, in several stages. Dams were built from earth and wood. Almost all dams served for movement along them, but some performed their direct function - they held back the water coming during the rainy season. The largest dam reached 9 kilometers in length.

Despite the fact that the Aztec capital was a huge city, most of the peasants lived on the outskirts of the city. Families lived in groups called calpulli. Each clan of Tenochtitlan lived in a separate residential area, consisting of many one-story houses - huts. The houses were for the most part mud huts made of silt, twigs and other improvised materials. Despite the considerable number of inhabitants, the capital of the Aztec empire did not suffer from overpopulation. From two to 6 people lived in one house. A married couple occupied one house or a large room in rare two-story buildings.

The Aztec capital Tenochtitlan and the arrival of the Spaniards

In the XV-XVI centuries Aztec capital Tenochtitlan has become one of the most beautiful cities in the Western Hemisphere. Apparently, it was then one of the largest in the world: the population by the beginning of the 16th century was almost 500 thousand people - a colossal figure at that time. This majestic city managed to exist for about two centuries. The Spanish conquistadors led by Hernán Cortés, who arrived in Tenochtitlan on November 8, 1519, were amazed by the splendor of the huge city.

According to one of the Spaniards who arrived on the island, “no one has ever seen, heard or even dreamed of anything like what we saw then.” The Aztecs - far from a peaceful people - subjugated most of their neighbors by military force, but the Spaniards were greeted surprisingly cordially, because according to ancient legend, the bearded, fair-faced and white-skinned god Quetzalcoatl, expelled by the Indians, was supposed to return precisely in the year of the reed rod, and Cortes and his comrades They took him for him.
Cortez's policies, however, led to conflict: a rebellion broke out, and the Spaniards were forced to flee Tenochtitlan on the night of July 1, later known as the "Night of Sorrows." Having been defeated, Cortez did not even think of giving up. Having replenished the army with people and weapons, he launched a new attack on the Aztec capital - Mexico City, as the Spaniards already called Tenochtitlan and on May 13, 1521, after a seventy-day siege, the city fell. Thus ended the history of one city and began the history of another.
You can read about other ancient cities of Central America in our articles about Palenque, Chichen Itza and Machu Picchu.

California ground cuckoo is a North American bird from the cuckoo family (Cuculidae). It lives in deserts and semi-deserts in the south and southwest of the United States and northern Mexico.

Adult ground cuckoos reach a length of 51 to 61 cm, including the tail. They have a long, slightly downward curved beak. The head, crest, back and long tail are dark brown with light splashes. The neck and belly are also light. Very long legs and a long tail are adaptations to the desert running lifestyle.

Most representatives of the cuckoo suborder stay in the crowns of trees and shrubs, fly well, and this species lives on the ground. Thanks to the peculiar build of the body and long legs, the cuckoo moves completely like a chicken. As she runs, she stretches her neck somewhat, slightly opens her wings and raises her crest. Only when necessary does the bird fly into trees or fly short distances.

The California ground cuckoo can reach speeds of up to 42 km/h. The special arrangement of her toes also helps her in this, since both outer toes are located back, and both inner toes are located forward. However, due to its short wings, it flies very poorly and can stay in the air for only a few seconds.

The California ground cuckoo has developed an unusual, energy-efficient way to spend cold nights in the desert. At this time of day, her body temperature drops and she falls into a kind of motionless hibernation. On its back there are dark areas of skin not covered with feathers. In the morning, she spreads her feathers and exposes these areas of skin to the sun, due to which her body temperature quickly returns to normal levels.

This bird spends most of its time on the ground and hunts snakes, lizards, insects, rodents and small birds. She is fast enough to kill even small vipers, which she grabs by the tail with her beak and hits her head on the ground like a whip. She swallows her prey whole. This bird got its English name Road Runner because it had the habit of running after mail coaches and grabbing small animals disturbed by their wheels.

The ground cuckoo fearlessly appears where other desert inhabitants are reluctant to penetrate - into the domain of rattlesnakes, since these poisonous reptiles, especially young ones, serve as prey for birds. The cuckoo usually attacks the snake, trying to hit it in the head with its powerful long beak. At the same time, the bird constantly jumps, dodging the opponent’s throws. Ground cuckoos are monogamous: during the period of hatching the chicks, a pair is formed, and both parents incubate the clutch and feed the cuckoos. Birds build a nest from twigs and dry grass in bushes or thickets of cacti. There are 3 - 9 white eggs in a clutch. Cuckoo chicks are fed exclusively by reptiles.

Death Valley

- the driest and hottest place in North America and a unique natural landscape in the southwestern United States (California and Nevada). It was in this place, back in 1913, that the highest temperature on Earth was recorded: on July 10, not far from the miniature town of Furnace Creek, the thermometer showed +57 degrees Celsius.

Death Valley got its name from settlers who crossed it in 1849, seeking the shortest route to the California gold mines. The guidebook briefly reports that “some stayed there forever.” The dead were ill-prepared for crossing the desert, did not stock up on water and lost their orientation. Before dying, one of them cursed this place, calling it Death Valley. The few survivors withered mule meat on the wreckage of dismantled carts and reached their goal. They left behind “cheerful” geographical names: Death Valley, Funeral Ridge, Last Chance Ridge, Coffin Canyon, Dead Man's Passage, Hell's Gate, Rattlesnake Gorge, etc.

Death Valley is surrounded on all sides by mountains. This is a seismically active region, the surface of which shifts along fault lines. Huge blocks of the earth's surface move during underground earthquakes, the mountains become higher, and the valley goes lower and lower in relation to sea level. On the other hand, erosion is constantly occurring - the destruction of mountains as a result of the influence of natural forces. Small and large stones, minerals, sand, salts and clay washed away from the surface of the mountains fill the valley (now the level of these ancient layers is about 2,750 m). However, the intensity of geological processes far exceeds the force of erosion, so in the next millions of years the trend of “growth” of mountains and lowering of valleys will continue.

The Badwater Basin is the lowest part of Death Valley, located at 85.5 m below sea level. Once upon a time after the Ice Age, Death Valley was a huge lake of fresh water. The local hot and dry climate contributed to the inevitable evaporation of water. Annual short-term, but very intense rains wash tons of minerals from the surface of the mountains into the lowlands. The salts remaining after the evaporation of water settle at the bottom, reaching their highest concentration in the lowest place, in a reservoir with poor water. Here, rainwater lingers longer, forming small temporary lakes. Once upon a time, the first settlers were surprised that their dehydrated mules refused to drink water from these lakes, and marked “bad water” on the map. This is how this area got its name. In fact, the water in the pool (when it is available) is not poisonous, but it tastes very salty. It also has its own unique inhabitants that are not found in other places: algae, aquatic insects, larvae, and even a mollusk named after its place of residence, Badwater Snail.

In a vast area of ​​the valley, located below the level of the World Ocean, and which was once the bottom of a prehistoric lake, one can observe the amazing behavior of salt deposits. This area is divided into two different zones that differ in the texture and shape of the salt crystals. In the first case, salt crystals grow upward, forming bizarre pointed piles and labyrinths 30-70 cm high. They form an interesting foreground with its chaos, well emphasized by the rays of the low sun in the morning and evening hours. Sharp as knives, growing crystals on a hot day emit an ominous, unique crackling sound. This part of the valley is quite difficult to navigate, but it is better not to spoil this beauty.

Nearby is the lowest area in the Valley Badwater Basin. Salt behaves differently here. A uniform salt grid 4-6 cm high is formed on an absolutely flat white surface. The grid consists of figures gravitating towards a hexagon in shape, and covers the bottom of the Valley with a huge web, creating an absolutely unearthly landscape.

In the southern part of Death Valley is a flat, level clay plain - the bottom of the dry lake Racetrack Playa - called Racetrack Playa. According to the very phenomenon found in this area - “self-propelled” stones.

Sailing stones, also called sliding or crawling stones, are a geological phenomenon. The stones move slowly along the clayey bottom of the lake, as evidenced by the long tracks left behind them. The stones move independently without the help of living creatures, but no one has ever seen or recorded the movement on camera. Similar movements of stones have been noted in several other places, but in terms of the number and length of tracks, Racetrack Playa stands out from the rest.

In 1933, Death Valley was declared a national monument, and in 1994 it received the status of a National Park and the park area was expanded to include another 500 thousand hectares of land.

The park's territory includes the Salina Valley, most of the Panamint Valley, as well as areas of several mountain systems. In the west rises Mount Telescope Peak, in the east – Mount Dante’s View, from the height of which a beautiful view of the entire valley opens.

There are many picturesque places here, especially on the slopes adjacent to the desert plain: the extinct Ubehebe volcano, the Titus Canyon. 300 m and length 20 km; a small lake with very salty water, in which a small shrimp lives; in the desert there are 22 species of unique plants, 17 species of lizards and 20 species of snakes. The park has a unique landscape. This is an unusual wild, beautiful nature, graceful rock formations, snow-capped mountain peaks, scorching salty plateaus, shallow canyons, hills covered with millions of delicate flowers.

coati- a mammal from the genus Noshu of the raccoon family. This mammal received its name for its elongated and very funny movable snout-nose.
Their head is narrow, their hair is short, their ears are round and small. There is a white rim on the edge of the inside of the ears. Nosukha is the owner of a very long tail, which is almost always in a vertical position. The animal uses its tail to balance itself when moving. The characteristic color of the tail is alternating light yellow, brown and black rings.

The color of the nose is varied: from orange to dark brown. The muzzle is usually a uniform black or brown color. There are light spots on the face, below and above the eyes. The neck is yellowish, the paws are black or dark brown.

the catch is elongated, the paws are strong with five fingers and non-retractable claws. The nose digs the ground with its claws, obtaining food. The hind legs are longer than the front legs. The length of the body from the nose to the tip of the tail is 80-130 cm, the length of the tail itself is 32-69 cm. The height at the withers is about 20-29 cm. They weigh about 3-5 kg. Males are almost twice as large as females.

Nosukhi live on average 7-8 years, but in captivity they can live up to 14 years. They live in tropical and subtropical forests of South America and the southern United States. Their favorite place is dense bushes, low-lying forests, and rocky terrain. Due to human intervention, lately nosos prefer forest edges and clearings.

They say that nosuhs used to be called simply badgers, but since real badgers moved to Mexico, the true homeland of nosuhs, this species received its own individual name.

Coatis move on the ground in a very interesting and unusual way; first they rest on the palms of their front paws, and then waddle forward with their hind paws. For this manner of walking, noses are also called plantigrades. Nosukhas are usually active during the day, most of which they spend on the ground in search of food, while at night they sleep in trees, which also serve to make a den and give birth to offspring. When they are threatened by danger on the ground, they hide from it in the trees; when the enemy is on a tree, they easily jump from a branch of one tree to a lower branch on the same or even another tree.

All noses, including coatis, are predators! Coatis get food for themselves with their noses, diligently sniffling and groaning, they inflate the foliage in this way and look for termites, ants, scorpions, beetles, and larvae under it. Sometimes it can also feed on land crabs, frogs, lizards, and rodents. During the hunt, the coati clamps its prey with its paws and bites its head. In difficult times of hunger, the Nosukhi allow themselves vegetarian cuisine; they eat ripe fruits, which, as a rule, are always in abundance in the forest. Moreover, they do not make reserves, but return to the tree from time to time.

Nosuhs live both in groups and alone. In groups there are 5-6 individuals, sometimes their number reaches 40. In groups there are only females and young males. Adult males live alone. The reason for this is their aggressive attitude towards children. They are expelled from the group and return only to mate.

Males usually lead a solitary lifestyle and only during the mating season do they join family groups of females with young ones. During the mating season, which is usually from October to March, one male is accepted into the group of females and young ones. All mature females living in the group mate with this male, and soon after mating he leaves the group.

In advance, before giving birth, the pregnant female leaves the group and is busy arranging a den for the future offspring. The shelter is usually located in tree hollows, in depressions in the soil, among stones, but most often in a rocky niche in a forested canyon. Caring for the young rests entirely with the female; the male does not take part in this.
As soon as young males turn two years old, they leave the group and subsequently lead a solitary lifestyle, females remain in the group.

Nosukha gives birth to cubs once a year. Usually there are 2-6 cubs in a litter. Newborns weigh 100-180 grams and are completely dependent on the mother, who leaves the nest for a while to find food. The eyes open at approximately 11 days. The babies remain in the nest for several weeks, and then leave it with their mother and join the family group.
Lactation lasts up to four months. Young noses stay with their mother until she begins to prepare for the birth of the next offspring.

Red Lynx is the most common wild cat on the North American continent. In general appearance, this is a typical lynx, but it is almost twice as small as an ordinary lynx and is not so long-legged and wide-legged. Its body length is 60-80 cm, height at the withers is 30-35 cm, weight is 6-11 kg. You can recognize a red lynx by its white

a mark on the inside of the black tip of the tail, smaller ear tufts and a lighter color. The fluffy fur may be reddish brown or gray. In Florida, there are even completely black individuals, the so-called “melanists”. The wild cat's face and paws are decorated with black markings.

You can meet the red lynx in dense subtropical forests or in desert areas among prickly cacti, on high mountain slopes or in swampy lowlands. The presence of humans does not prevent it from appearing on the outskirts of villages or small towns. This predator chooses areas where it can feast on small rodents, nimble squirrels or timid rabbits and even prickly porcupines.

Although the bobcat is a good tree climber, it only climbs trees in search of food and shelter. It hunts at dusk; only young animals go hunting during the day.

Vision and hearing are well developed. Hunts on the ground, sneaking up on prey. The lynx holds its prey with its sharp claws and kills it with a bite to the base of the skull. In one sitting, an adult animal eats up to 1.4 kg of meat. He hides the remaining surplus and returns to it the next day.For rest, the red lynx chooses a new place every day, without lingering in the old one. This could be a crack in the rocks, a cave, a hollow log, a space under a fallen tree, etc. On the ground or snow, the red lynx takes a step approximately 25 - 35 cm long; The size of an individual footprint is approximately 4.5 x 4.5 cm. When walking, they place their hind paws exactly in the tracks left by their front paws. Thanks to this, they never make very loud noise from the crackling of dry twigs under their feet. Soft pillows on their legs help them calmly sneak up to the animal at close range. Bobcats are good tree climbers and can also swim across a small body of water, but they only do this on rare occasions.

The red lynx is a territorial animal. The lynx marks the boundaries of the site and its paths with urine and feces. In addition, she leaves marks of her claws on trees. The male learns that the female is ready to mate by the smell of her urine. A mother with cubs is very aggressive towards any animal or person that threatens her kittens.

In the wild, males and females like to be alone, meeting only during the breeding season. The only time when individuals of different sexes look for meetings is during the mating season, which occurs at the end of winter - the beginning of spring. The male mates with all the females that are in the same area with him. The female's pregnancy lasts only 52 days. Cubs are born in the spring, blind and helpless. At this time, the female tolerates the male only not far from the den. After about a week, the babies' eyes open slightly, but for another eight weeks they remain with their mother and are fed with her milk. The mother licks their fur and warms them with her body. The female red lynx is a very caring mother. In case of danger, she moves the kittens to another shelter.

When the cubs begin to eat solid food, the mother allows the male to approach the den. The male regularly brings food to the cubs and helps the female raise them. This kind of parental care is unusual for male wild cats. When the kids grow up, the whole family travels, stopping for a short time in various hiding places of the female's hunting area. When the kittens are 4-5 months old, the mother begins to teach them hunting techniques. During this time, kittens play a lot with each other and through games they learn about different ways of obtaining food, hunting and behavior in difficult situations. The cubs spend another 6-8 months with their mother (before the start of the new mating season).

A male bobcat often occupies an area of ​​100 km2, and border areas may be shared by several males. The female's area is half the size. Within the territory of one male, 2-3 females usually live. A male red lynx, whose territory is often home to three females and cubs, must provide food for 12 kittens.

Among the almost two and a half thousand species of higher plants found in the flora of the Sonoran Desert, the most widely represented are species from the family of Compositae, legumes, cereals, buckwheat, euphorbia, cactus and borage. A number of communities characteristic of the main habitats make up the vegetation of the Sonoran Desert.

The extensive, slightly sloping alluvial fans support vegetation, the main components of which are clumps of creosote bush and ragweed. They also include several types of prickly pear, quinoa, acacia, fuqueria, or ocotillo.

On the alluvial plains below the fans, the vegetation cover mainly consists of sparse forest of mesquite trees. Their roots, penetrating into the depths, reach groundwater, and roots located in the surface layer of soil, within a radius of up to twenty meters from the trunk, can intercept precipitation. A mature mesquite tree reaches a height of eighteen meters and can be more than a meter wide. In our time, only the pitiful remnants of the once majestic mesquite forests remain, long cut down for fuel. The mesquite forest is very similar to the black saxaul thickets in the Karakum Desert. The forest composition, in addition to mesquite, includes clematis and acacia.

Near the water, along the banks of rivers, near the water, there are poplars, with ash and Mexican elder mixed in with them. Plants such as acacia, creosote bush and celtis grow in the beds of arroyos, drying up temporary streams, as well as in the adjacent plains. In the Gran Desierto Desert, near the Gulf of California coast, ragweed and creosote bush dominate the sandy plains, while ephedra and tobosa, ragweed, grow on the sand dunes.

Trees here grow only on large dry riverbeds. The mountains are mainly inhabited by cacti and xerophilous shrubs, but the cover is very sparse. The saguaro is quite rare (and completely absent in California) and its distribution here is again limited to riverbeds. Annuals (mostly winter ones) make up almost half of the flora, and in the driest areas up to 90% of the species composition: they appear in huge quantities only in wet years.

In the Arizona Highlands, northwest of the Sonoran Desert, the vegetation is especially colorful and varied. The denser vegetation cover and diversity of vegetation is due to more precipitation here than in other areas of Sonora, as well as the ruggedness of the terrain, a combination of steep slopes of different exposures and hills. A peculiar cactus forest, in which the main place is occupied by the giant columnar saguaro cactus, with a low-growing encelia shrub located between the cacti, is formed on gravelly soils with a large amount of fine earth. Also among the vegetation there are large barrel-shaped ferocactus, ocotillo, paloverde, several types of prickly pear, acacia, celtis, creosote bush, as well as mesquite tree, in the floodplains.

The most common tree species here are foothill paloverde, ironwood, acacia and saguaro. Under the canopy of these tall trees, 3-5 tiers of shrubs and trees of different heights can be developed. The most characteristic cacti - tall choyas - form a real "cactus forest" in rocky areas.

The trees and shrubs of the Sonoran Desert that attract attention with their unique appearance include ivory tree, ironwood and idria, or buium, growing only in two areas of the Sonoran Desert, located in Mexico, which is part of the region of Latin America.

A small area in the center of Sonora, which consists of a series of very wide valleys between mountain ranges. It has denser vegetation than the Arizona Highlands because it receives more rain (mostly in the summer) and the soils are thicker and finer-grained. The flora is almost the same as in the highlands, but some tropical elements are added, since frosts are more rare and mild. There are a lot of legume trees, especially mesquites, and few columnar cacti. There are isolated “islands” of thorny bushes on the hills. Much of the area has been converted to agricultural land in recent decades.

The Vizcaino region is located in the central third of the California Peninsula. There is little precipitation, but the air is cool, as humid sea breezes often bring fogs, weakening the aridity of the climate. Rain falls mainly in winter and averages less than 125 mm. Here in the flora there are some very unusual plants, bizarre landscapes are characteristic: fields of white granite boulders, cliffs of black lava, etc. Interesting plants are bujamas, an ivory tree, a 30 m high cordon, a throttle ficus growing on the rocks and a blue palm. In contrast to the main Vizcaino Desert, the Vizcaino Coastal Plain is a flat, cool, foggy desert with 0.3 m tall shrubs and fields of annuals.

District Magdalena is located south of Vizcaino on the California Peninsula and is similar in appearance to Vizcaino, but the flora is slightly different. Most of the meager rainfall occurs in the summer, when the Pacific breeze blows from the sea. The only noticeable plant on the pale Magdalena Plain is the creeping devil's cactus (Stenocereus eruca), but away from the coast on the rocky slopes the vegetation is quite dense and consists of trees, shrubs and cacti.

Riverine communities are usually isolated ribbons or islands of deciduous forest along temporary streams. There are very few permanent or dry watercourses (the largest is the Colorado River), but there are many where water appears only a couple of days or even a few hours a year. Dry beds, or "washes", of arroyos - "arroyos" - are places where many trees and shrubs are concentrated. Xerophilic open forests along dry riverbeds are highly variable. Along some ephemeral streams, almost pure mesquite forest occurs, others may be dominated by blue paloverde or ironwood, or develop a mixed forest. Characteristic is the so-called "desert willow", which is actually a catalpa.

The last of the great indigenous cities of Mesoamerica was the Aztec city of Tenochtitlan, located in the Valley of Mexico. By the time of the Spanish conquest in 1521, the city was better organized and larger in size than any European city of the time. The Spanish conqueror Hernan Cortes on August 13, 1521, after a 70-day siege, declared the city of Tenochtitlan the possession of the king of Spain. The splendor of this city amazed the winners. Their historians described it as something magical due to its grandiose towers, temples and stone buildings rising straight out of the water. The city of Tenochtitlan was founded in 1325 by the Aztecs on an island in the middle of a lake with marshy shores in the Valley of Mexico. The Aztecs came to the valley from the north under the leadership of their leader Tenoch. Less than a hundred years have passed since the city was founded, when Tenochtitlan turned into a huge metropolis with a population of 150-200 thousand. It was connected to the banks by 3 wide dam roads: to the north, south and west. It was often necessary to move around the city by water. In the middle of the city there was a gigantic ritual center with many temples and altars, where the 45-meter Great Temple towered above them all. The Great Temple was built in the form of a pyramid, its façade facing west. A wide double staircase led to the very top of the pyramid, where two smaller temples stood. These were the temples of the two most revered gods by the Aztecs: Huitzilopochtli, the god of the sun and war, and Tlaloc, the god of rain and water. Subsequently, the stone blocks of the temple were used by the Spaniards for the construction of the Catholic Cathedral - the largest on the American continent (the construction of the Cathedral took three centuries). During excavations, many stone statues and masks of Tlaloc were found, but not a single image of Huitzilopochtli. From Spanish chronicles it is known that his images were usually made from a special kind of dough and seeds that had long since decomposed. The market in the city, as described by the Spaniards, was very large and well organized, with a huge variety of goods. Each type of goods had its own special place, and all goods were carefully checked. The Aztecs had no money; people exchanged their goods among themselves or paid with cocoa beans, copper axes or pieces of cloth. The houses of the nobility were also notable in the city. Some of them were so large that they often had gardens, both above-ground and hanging. The gardens had fruit trees, areas for herbs and pools with exotic fish. But the most amazing place was the ruler's palace. It had an arsenal, a weaving workshop where women wove fabrics especially for the ruler, and workshops where potters, metalworkers, jewelers and other artisans worked. There was also an aviary where every conceivable species of bird from all over the empire was kept. The palace parks were the most amazing and magnificent in the whole world at that time. The ruler of Tenochtitlan and his nobility lived in the center of the city, near ritual buildings. The rest of the population lived on the outskirts of the city in groups called calpulli and consisted of those who performed one type of work and their relatives. Each clan settled in a separate residential area, consisting of one-story houses. These houses were mud huts made of twigs and silt, or adobe buildings made of bricks. On August 3, 1521, the Spanish captured Tenochtitlan along with the last Tlatoani, Cuauhtémoc, and a number of his high councilors. Subsequently, Tenochtitlan was completely sacked and destroyed, Cuauhtemoc was executed (in 1525), and the Aztec empire was completely conquered by the Spaniards.

Tenochtitlan existed for only two centuries - trifles on the scale of a capital city. Founded around 1325 on an island in the salt lake of Texcoco, it fell in 1521 to Hernán Cortés and his thugs.

The capital of the Aztecs was named after the leader Tenoch: he, as an honest man, decided that since he founded the city himself, he should name it after himself. There are, of course, alternative versions of the translation. Thus, according to one of them, Tenochtitlan means “the city on the stones of which tuns (sacred fruits) grow in abundance,” according to another, “the heart of the earth.”

The Aztecs cut out people's hearts and sacrificed them to the Sun.

The ancient Aztecs were nomadic hunters. To choose a place for the capital, the Indians roamed the southern lands of North America from end to end for 260 years. And for a reason. According to legend, the god of the sun and war, Huitzilopochtli, bequeathed to found a city where the Aztecs would see an eagle sitting on a cactus with prey in its claws. By the way, this image is on the Mexican flag today. God said - there is nothing to do, we must search. And so, in the first quarter of the 14th century, the Indians were lucky - they found such a place: with an eagle, and with cacti, and with a victim.

According to another, less romantic version, by the time the Aztecs arrived in the valley of modern Mexico City, the entire territory was divided between local tribes. Nobody wanted to give a good piece to the aliens, but to allocate an uninhabited island on Lake Texcoco, where there were many snakes, is welcome. Locals expected that strangers would have a hard time. However, they did not know that snakes were an essential element of the Aztec diet. The Indians were happy.

Mexico City is located on the site of the Aztec capital today.

Lake Texcoco, on the shores of which Tenochtitlan appeared, was rich in fish and waterfowl, and there was a lot of game here. The climate was good, food was plentiful - the city grew quickly. Already 100 years after its founding, about 100 thousand people lived in the capital. By 1500 it was the largest city on Earth. By the way, today Mexico City is one of the most densely populated cities in the world.

The city was engaged in farming. The Aztecs created artificial islands on which they grew vegetables, spices and flowers. Tenochtitlan was divided into four districts, each of which had its own temple complex, and in the center of the city there was a gigantic ritual center with many altars, above which the 45-meter Great Temple towered. It was a “city within a city”: the territory surrounded by a high wall was entered only to perform special rituals.

At the turn of the XV-XVI centuries. ekov Tenochtitlan was the most populous city

Taking into account the looseness of the soil, Aztec builders erected all monumental buildings on long, thin and elastic piles. It was often necessary to move around the city by water. In a word, Venice in Mexican style.

Sacrifice was very popular at that time. If you need rain - make a sacrifice, if you want children - make a sacrifice, how to get rich - well, you get the idea. And so it is in everything. The Aztecs practiced this on a special scale. Every holiday (there were almost two dozen of them in the sacred calendar), they placed human corpses on the altar as a sign of great respect for the gods.

The fall of Tenochtitlan ended the history of the Aztec Empire.

Usually the victim was brought to the top platform of a huge pyramid, laid on a slab, the stomach was ripped open, the heart was taken out and lifted up to the Sun. Then the heart was placed in a special stone vessel, and the body was thrown onto the stairs, from where the priests carried it away. The body parts were then disposed of in various ways: the entrails were fed to animals, the skull was polished and displayed, and the rest was either burned or chopped into small pieces and offered as gifts to important people.

If prisoners were sacrificed, they could first be tortured, drugged - in general, whatever the heart desired, as long as the Sun would shine brighter. And special raids to capture prisoners - future victims - were called very romantically “flower wars.”

Were the Aztecs cannibals? There is no clear answer. Some researchers say that the meat of the victims was part of the diet of the upper classes as a reward because the diet was low in protein. In one of his letters, Cortez, for example, said that his soldiers caught an Aztec who was roasting a baby for breakfast.

According to other sources, after the sacrifice, the body was given to the warrior who captured the prisoner, and he, in turn, boiled it, then cut it and presented the pieces to important people in exchange for gifts and slaves. But this meat was rarely eaten, as it was believed that it had no value - it was replaced with turkey or simply thrown away.

The Spaniards who arrived in the 16th century were amazed. On the one hand, they were inspired by the beauty and wealth of Tenochtitlan, on the other, stories about numerous sacrifices chilled their blood. Hernán Cortés's first attempt to conquer the capital was made in 1519. The Aztecs fought back and drove out the invaders. The Spaniards left, but returned a year later with fresh forces. This time, before attacking the capital, the Spanish troops captured all the significant Aztec cities nearby.

The siege of Tenochtitlan lasted 70 days. The main difficulty of the battle was that it was necessary to get to the city along dams where horses could not be used. Then Cortez decided to go from the other side and ordered the destruction of the water supply system that supplied the capital with drinking water.

Despite this, the Aztecs resisted for quite some time. The protracted struggle exhausted the strength of both sides. The conquerors were exhausted, and their allies from neighboring tribes began to grumble. Then Cortez adopted a plan for the complete destruction of the city. After stubborn fighting, the Spaniards broke through to the center of the capital, where the battle escalated into a massacre. The conquistadors and their Indian allies sought to exterminate the surviving inhabitants of Tenochtitlan as quickly as possible.

When it became clear that the city was surrendering, the Aztec emperor Montezuma II decided to escape. However, the Spaniards intercepted his canoe and took the ruler hostage. After they forced him to reveal where the treasure was hidden, the unarmed, exhausted Aztecs were released from the destruction of Tenochtitlan.

The conquerors got gold, valued at about 130 thousand Spanish gold ducats. But... this turned out to be not enough. Then they began to torture the prisoners, demanding to know where the treasures were. However, they were unable to find out anything more.

Having taken Tenochtitlan, Cortes declared it the possession of the king of Spain. The city of Mexico was founded on the ruins of the Indian capital. This was the end of the history of the Aztec Empire.

Aztec Temple in Tenochtitlan

On the night of February 21, 1978, in the heart of Mexico City, on the corner of Guatemala and Argentina streets, workers from the city's electricity company were excavating. Having broken through the thick concrete covering and penetrated two meters into the ground, they suddenly came across a layer of stone. Having cleared the surface of the stone from adhering clay, the workers discovered a relief image on it and decided to postpone work until the morning. To identify the find, a group of archaeologists from the National Institute of Anthropology and History was urgently called by telephone. On February 23, it was established that the find was part of a monolith with a profile image of a human face and head ornaments.

Until February 27, under the guidance of archaeologists, work continued to extract the find, which turned out to be a huge stone disk with a diameter of 3.25 m. On its surface, scientists saw an engraved naked and dismembered female figure without a head. According to historians, it was the moon goddess Coyolxauqui, the sister of the Aztec god of war and sun Huitzilopochtli, killed and quartered, according to legend, by her brother on the hill of Contepec.

Thus, an unexpected discovery marked the beginning of major excavations of the Great Aztec Temple in Tenochtitlan...

The Aztecs settled on the small islands of Lake Texcoco around 1325. At first they came under the rule of the ruler Azcapotzalco, from which they were able to free themselves only in 1428. Subsequently, the warlike Aztecs captured vast lands throughout Mesoamerica. The Aztecs built their capital Tenochtitlan with beautiful stone houses, palaces and temples. They connected the islands with each other and the mainland with dams. The city was crossed by large and small canals. It was a real “Indian Venice” - a clearly planned city on stilts. In its central part there was a wide square with a 46-meter pyramid - the Great Temple of Tenochtitlan in honor of the god Huitzilopochtli and many smaller buildings - chapels, sanctuaries and residences of an entire army of priests.

Stone disk depicting the goddess Coyolxauqui

Grandiose construction, maintenance of the priestly class, the army and the house of the supreme ruler required enormous funds. It is not surprising that the Aztecs waged endless wars with neighboring tribes, plundered them and, what was most outrageous, destroyed all prisoners. The cruelty of the Aztecs towards the vanquished knew no bounds. Thousands of human sacrifices were performed on the altars of the Great Temple. The priests cut out the quivering hearts of some with ritual knives, they shot some with bows and tied them to ritual posts, some were slowly roasted over a fire, and then, already half-dead, their hearts were torn out.

One day, in revenge for these atrocities, men of the Hueshotzinki tribe secretly entered the city and burned the temple of the goddess Tonatzin. The Aztecs responded with another military campaign. With the arrival of the Spaniards, almost all the tribes formed a coalition that supported Cortez, and in 1521 the Aztecs were finally defeated. The white conquerors destroyed Tenochtitlan, and with it the Great Temple.

As a sign of the final conquest of the Aztecs, the Spanish, or rather, colonial city of Mexico City, the capital of modern Mexico, was erected on the site of their pyramids and temples, plazas and altars. The remains of Tenochtitlan remained under the foundations of Catholic cathedrals, palaces of the nobility, and public buildings of the Viceroyalty of Mexico. Excavations of the Great Temple continued until the end of 1982. Restorers, biologists, chemists, geologists and other specialists in ancient history worked in a team with archaeologists. After almost five years of continuous work, we were able to draw the first results. As it turned out, the main facade of the temple was facing west. He stood on a wide platform resting on a stylobate with two staircases that led to the sanctuaries of the god of war Huitzilopochtli on the south side of the temple and the god of rain and fertility Tlaloc on the north. In front of the entrance to the sanctuary of Huitzilopochtli lies a sacrificial stone, and in front of the sanctuary of Tlaloc is a painted figure of Chacmool, the divine messenger, collector of sacrifices. The base of the temple is decorated on four sides with incense burners and snake heads. Other decorations include stone frogs, jaguars and huge sea shells.

During the five-year excavation, only about seven thousand objects were found from approximately 100 sacrificial sites. Archaeologists themselves note that the location of objects in places of sacrifice is not accidental; it corresponds to yet unsolved symbolism. In other words, these objects and their placement, or rather their orientation to the cardinal points, have their own language. For example, two sacrifices, found one in the middle of the southern side, the other in the northern side, contained identical sets of objects: shells laid out in a north-south direction below, crocodiles above them, a snake head on top, and figurines of a seated deity at the base of the Great Temple, it is believed , god of fire Xiuhtecuhtli, guarding the center of the universe. To the right of these figures is sea coral, and to the left is a clay vessel with an image of Tlaloc.

Among the finds made in the Great Temple are many different masks and figurines, alabaster deer heads and figurines of seated gods, sea shells, fish bones, sawfish heads, corals, crocodiles and jaguars. Finds related to the cult of the war god Huitzilopochtli include incense burners with reliefs in the form of skulls and tecpatl ritual knives decorated with eyes and teeth made from sea shells. A monumental stone relief of the goddess Coyolxauqui lay, as it turned out, at the foot of the sanctuary of the god of war, and nearby they found a small altar with two stone frogs on the sides.

One can only imagine how savagely cruel the Aztec religion was, even if their goddess was quartered by her brother.

Many modern Mexican astrologers believe that the “liberation” of Coyolxauqui brings with it negative consequences for the prosperity of the country, and are trying to find ways to combat its energy field...

The great temple of Tenochtitlan, now standing at the bottom of a huge pit dug around it, formerly rose in the middle of a vast fenced area where there were other temples, chambers of warriors, a priestly school and a stadium for a ritual ball game. Elaborate religious rituals included festivals, fasting, chants, dances, the burning of incense and rubber, and dramatic performances of human sacrifice. The latter formed an important part of Aztec religious rites and were practiced, it is believed, in order to supply the gods with energy and thereby delay the inevitable death of the human race. Sacrifice, the Aztecs believed, was necessary to maintain a sustainable life cycle. Human blood nourished the Sun, caused rains and ensured the earthly existence of people.

Some forms of sacrifice were limited to bloodletting through the thorns of the maguey plant, but more often the priests killed the victim by ripping open his chest with a knife and tearing out his heart. In some rituals, the chosen one, who had the honor of embodying the deity, was sacrificed; in others, many captives were killed.

According to Aztec mythology, the Universe was divided into thirteen heavens and nine underworlds. The created world went through four eras of development, each of which ended with the death of the human race: the first - from jaguars, the second - from hurricanes, the third - from a worldwide fire, the fourth - from a flood. The modern era of the Fifth Sun, according to the Aztecs, should end with terrible earthquakes.

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