Article: The Aztec calendar stone.

A team of artists created the Aztec Calendar Stone in 1511 for Motecuhzoma II, the last Aztec ruler before the Spanish Conquest. This huge monolith measures almost 12 feet in diameter, and its carved circular area features a densely detailed image of the sun. Originally located in front of the Great Temple of the Aztec capital city, it lay in a horizontal position on a low pyramid with four stairways.

On this stone, the Aztecs sacrificed prisoners of war by removing their hearts as offerings to the gods.

Aztec rulers also offered their own blood by puncturing parts of their bodies with sharpened bones. In 1521, the Spaniards tore the stone from its base ...

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