Variety of Jobs in the Aztecs Civilization

Kenzy, Dana , Tala

List of Aztec jobs

Rulers Warriors Priests Craftspeople Farmers Weavers

Aztec Warriors The life of Aztec warriors was one of

constant battle. The primary purpose for this Aztec warfare was to take prisoners to be respectful to their gods. As the Aztec empire expanded, however, another major purpose of Aztec wars was to expand the size and power of the empire.

Aztec warriors typesEagle WarriorsThe First type of Aztec warrior was the Eagle Warrior. The Eagle Warriors were the scouts of the Aztec Warriors as well as being good fighters. They were the eyes, ears, the messengers who would find the information necessary to lead and strategize an attack. These warriors often wore helmets adorned with eagle feathers and heads. They adorned their armor with feathers and carried brightly colored shields.Jaguar WarriorsThe second type of Aztec warrior were the Jaguar Warriors. The Jaguar Warriors were considered to be the all out fighting troops and full time warriors. The brute force of the Aztec army, they wore Jaguar skins over their heads with their faces peering out beneath the jaguar.

Aztec Farmers Farmers formed the foundation of Aztec

society. These everyday men, women, and children worked the land and lived their lives far from the grand temples and opulent residences of central Tenochtitlan, the Aztec capital city.

Farming FamiliesWomen wove cloth and made clothing, prepared food, raised turkeys, and tapped drought-resistant maguey, a member of the agave family.

Men worked in the fields growing maize, beans, maguey, squash, and chilies. And when not tending their fields, men labored on state building projects and served as foot soldiers in the army.

Children

helped their parents, aunts, and uncles to carry firewood, spin thread, and offer tortillas and incense to the gods at the family altar.

Aztec Priests

Aztec Priests come from Aztec Warrior Families, and are the people who show greater faith than their warrior brothers. They are trained to be priests in the temples, sacrificing living hearts to keep the sun moving through the sky.

Aztec priests spend their day watching the skies and awful heart sacrifices. They often took lead roles in religious ceremonies.

All Aztec priests are members of the temple-pyramids that dwarf the other buildings in the Aztec cities. Aztecs respect Aztec priests greatly, and rely upon them to predict weather and measure the seasons (both very important for farmers), while others fear and hate Aztec priests, thinking them to be savages.

Rulers, NoblesThe Emperor and the rest of the ruling class lived near the center of Tenochtitlan, which is the capital city. By law, the emperor and the nobility, enjoyed certain properties and benefits that are not attainable to the majority of the other citizens. According to Aztec rulers, it is mandatory that citizens pay taxes; such as, food, raw materials, and produced goods. The collectors collected these items from overpowered towns and cities, protecting their wealth for the Aztec ruling class. Back in Tenochtitlan, the emperor and the nobility wore clothes produced from the finest cotton cloth, ate their food from high-quality ceramic plates, drank and ate chocolate from the most valuable cacao beans, and lived in the most luxurious areas surrounding the sacred sectors in the center of the town

Craftspeople The Aztecs were professional

artisans who worked with a variety of different natural materials, such as, clay, stones, human and animal bones, plants feathers, seashells, and hand-woven cloth. They used these many materials in the most creative ways. Clay was dug from the Earth and shaped by hand since they didn’t have the potter’s wheel yet, and was left in the sun to harden/dry. Sun bricks were made by using the same method. The craftspeople would carry their products to the local marketplaces where excess goods were traded for with cacao beans. More often, these skilled Aztecs passed their skills to the younger children. For example, from a young age, girls were taught by their mothers how to spin thread and weave cloth using a simple loom. (A device used for making fabric by weaving yarn or thread).

Weavers

Aztec women spent much of their time weaving cloth. They dyed, sewed, and decorated the cloth. The higher a person's social status, the more elaborate the decorations that appeared on his clothing. The Aztecs also were excellent at feather weaving. Weavers raised exotic birds in cages to get brightly colored feathers. The weavers attached the feathers to a net to make cloaks, headdresses, and other decorative items. Only one example of Aztec feather weaving survives today. A headdress give by Montezuma to Cortes is preserved in a museum in Vienna. Women of the poorer classes wove the cloth needed to dress their family, but some men and religious women became weavers for the noble classes. These professional weavers created an intricate cloth called Cumbi cloth, which was tightly woven with geometric designs of many colors. Cumbi cloth was used as a tax payment to the emperor and for ceremonial clothing. It was so important that it was worn by the emperor himself and his family.

Bibliography

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warriors-984470.html http://home.freeuk.net/elloughton13/images2/

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