1993, ISBN: 0500277206

Taschenbuch

[EAN: 9780500277201], [PU: Thames and Hudson, New York, NY], AZTEC ART AND CIVILIZATION LIFE LORE PRECOLUMBIAN TRADITIONAL CULTURES NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY CENTRAL INDIANS EMPIRES 978-05… Mehr…

[EAN: 9780500277201], [PU: Thames and Hudson, New York, NY], AZTEC ART AND CIVILIZATION LIFE LORE PRECOLUMBIAN TRADITIONAL CULTURES NORTH AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY CENTRAL INDIANS EMPIRES 978-0500277201, First Edition Thus, so stated. Near Fine in Wraps: shows only the most minute indications of use: just a touch of wear to the extremities; mild rubbing; small dot of soiling at the bottom of the rear panel; former owner's name and gift inscription at the front endpaper. The binding is square and secure; the text is clean. No longer absolutely pristine, but remains very close to 'As New'. NOT a Remainder, Book-Club, or Ex-Library. 8vo. 224pp. (Ancient Peoples and Places). Trade Paperback. From the standpoint of an interested amateur, the first edition of Dr. Townsend's book "The Aztecs" was the best scholarly-but-general presentation of the Aztec civilization, culture, life, religion, art, and history available. The book was comprehensive and vastly informative but never dull -- thanks to some excellent writing. Professor Townsend's book has gone on through two new editions with several slight changes. Most of the first edition's numerous and helpful halftone illustrations have been retained, but a few have been deleted and a few added (total of three more in the new edition). The extent of changes is not, however, striking, and certainly does not render the first edition obsolete. This still remains that this is THE classic: the book to read if you are interested in the Aztecs; it forms a solid basis for all other reading in the field. Dr. Townsend focuses on the grand sweep of cities, nobility, and empire without omitting the telling detail. This is simply THE classic text on Aztec civilization., Books<

ISBN: 9780500277201

Today the Aztecs seem a remote, alien people. Warlike and bloodthirsty, they are best known as the practitioners of human sacrifice. Yet their creative achievements are impressive: within… Mehr…

Today the Aztecs seem a remote, alien people. Warlike and bloodthirsty, they are best known as the practitioners of human sacrifice. Yet their creative achievements are impressive: within the space of a hundred years they established the largest empire in Mesoamerican history, and at Tenochtitlan built a vast, shimmering city in a lake, a Venice of the New World whose temple-pyramids, elegant plazas and thronging markets defied the descriptive powers of the conquistadors. Richard Townsend presents the first fully rounded portrait of the Aztecs, integrating military, economic and symbolic approaches to reconcile the apparently contradictory aspects of their culture. He begins with a dramatic narrative of the Spanish conquest and then charts the rise of the Aztecs from humble nomads to empire builders. He shows how war and human sacrifice did indeed act as instruments of terror, but also how their deeper significance lay in the Aztec belief that the shedding of human blood ensured fertility of the land and renewal of the seasons. Chapters on the ancient deities and festival calendar, the New Fire ceremony and sacred rain-mountains, as well as kingship rites, explore this all-pervading theme in Aztec society of physical and spiritual regeneration. The Aztecs ranges from the everyday life of farmers and priests, artisans and kings, to the sinister spying activities of Aztec traders; from the making of chocolate to battle tactics. Recent discoveries from archaeological excavations are interwoven with the latest results from studies of the monuments, Spanish records and illustrated codices to produce a fresh and definitive new history of a remarkable people. Media >, [PU: Thames & Hudson]<

ISBN: 9780500277201

Today the Aztecs seem a remote, alien people. Warlike and bloodthirsty, they are best known as the practitioners of human sacrifice. Yet their creative achievements are impressive: within… Mehr…

Today the Aztecs seem a remote, alien people. Warlike and bloodthirsty, they are best known as the practitioners of human sacrifice. Yet their creative achievements are impressive: within the space of a hundred years they established the largest empire in Mesoamerican history, and at Tenochtitlan built a vast, shimmering city in a lake, a Venice of the New World whose temple-pyramids, elegant plazas and thronging markets defied the descriptive powers of the conquistadors. Richard Townsend presents the first fully rounded portrait of the Aztecs, integrating military, economic and symbolic approaches to reconcile the apparently contradictory aspects of their culture. He begins with a dramatic narrative of the Spanish conquest and then charts the rise of the Aztecs from humble nomads to empire builders. He shows how war and human sacrifice did indeed act as instruments of terror, but also how their deeper significance lay in the Aztec belief that the shedding of human blood ensured fertility of the land and renewal of the seasons. Chapters on the ancient deities and festival calendar, the New Fire ceremony and sacred rain-mountains, as well as kingship rites, explore this all-pervading theme in Aztec society of physical and spiritual regeneration. The Aztecs ranges from the everyday life of farmers and priests, artisans and kings, to the sinister spying activities of Aztec traders; from the making of chocolate to battle tactics. Recent discoveries from archaeological excavations are interwoven with the latest results from studies of the monuments, Spanish records and illustrated codices to produce a fresh and definitive new history of a remarkable people. Media >, [PU: Thames & Hudson]<

ISBN: 9780500277201

Today the Aztecs seem a remote, alien people. Warlike and bloodthirsty, they are best known as the practitioners of human sacrifice. Yet their creative achievements are impressive: within… Mehr…

Today the Aztecs seem a remote, alien people. Warlike and bloodthirsty, they are best known as the practitioners of human sacrifice. Yet their creative achievements are impressive: within the space of a hundred years they established the largest empire in Mesoamerican history, and at Tenochtitlan built a vast, shimmering city in a lake, a Venice of the New World whose temple-pyramids, elegant plazas and thronging markets defied the descriptive powers of the conquistadors. Richard Townsend presents the first fully rounded portrait of the Aztecs, integrating military, economic and symbolic approaches to reconcile the apparently contradictory aspects of their culture. He begins with a dramatic narrative of the Spanish conquest and then charts the rise of the Aztecs from humble nomads to empire builders. He shows how war and human sacrifice did indeed act as instruments of terror, but also how their deeper significance lay in the Aztec belief that the shedding of human blood ensured fertility of the land and renewal of the seasons. Chapters on the ancient deities and festival calendar, the New Fire ceremony and sacred rain-mountains, as well as kingship rites, explore this all-pervading theme in Aztec society of physical and spiritual regeneration. The Aztecs ranges from the everyday life of farmers and priests, artisans and kings, to the sinister spying activities of Aztec traders; from the making of chocolate to battle tactics. Recent discoveries from archaeological excavations are interwoven with the latest results from studies of the monuments, Spanish records and illustrated codices to produce a fresh and definitive new history of a remarkable people. Media >, [PU: Thames & Hudson]<