Primary or Secondary Source? Review Game!

Document A “To us the Aztec universe may appear irrational, terrifying, murderous in its brutality; and yet it is a mirror held up to our humanity which we ignore at our cost. For in the name of other ideals and other gods Western culture has been no less addicted to killing, even in our own century.” –Michael Wood, British historian

Document A “To us the Aztec universe may appear irrational, terrifying, murderous in its brutality; and yet it is a mirror held up to our humanity which we ignore at our cost. For in the name of other ideals and other gods Western culture has been no less addicted to killing, even in our own century.” –Michael Wood, British historian SECONDARY- This is a historian talking about the past.

Document B “Today we are at last beginning to understand the intricacies of this amazing culture, which was the equal of any in Europe in moral refinement, artistic sensibility, social complexity, and political organization.” –J. Jorge Klor de Alva, American anthropologist

Document B “Today we are at last beginning to understand the intricacies of this amazing culture, which was the equal of any in Europe in moral refinement, artistic sensibility, social complexity, and political organization.” –J. Jorge Klor de Alva, American anthropologist SECONDARY- This is a anthropologist (someone who studies the history of people) talking about the past.

Document C 'Evil': A turquoise double-headed serpent pectoral dating , which was a tribute from Moctezuma to Cortes

Document C 'Evil': A turquoise double-headed serpent pectoral dating , which was a tribute from Moctezuma to Cortes PRIMARY- This is an original artifact.

Document D “In essence, the Mexica remained little more than a band of pirates, sallying forth from their great city to loot and plunder and to submit vast areas to tribute payment, without altering the essential social constitution of their victims.” –Eric Wolf, American anthropologist

Document D “In essence, the Mexica remained little more than a band of pirates, sallying forth from their great city to loot and plunder and to submit vast areas to tribute payment, without altering the essential social constitution of their victims.” –Eric Wolf, American anthropologist SECONDARY- This is a anthropologist (someone who studies the history of people) talking about the past.

Document E “Such as they were, with their greatness and their weaknesses, their ideal of order and their cruelty, their obsession with the mystery of blood and death, their sensitivity to the beauty of flowers, birds and gems, their strength of religious feeling—strong to the point of suicide—their excellent practical organization of the state, their attachment to their land and their maize, which still did not keep their eyes from turning continually to the stars—with all this, these ancient Mexicans were civilized men. Their culture, so suddenly destroyed, is one of those that humanity can be proud of having created.” –Jacques Soustelle, French anthropologist

Document E “Such as they were, with their greatness and their weaknesses, their ideal of order and their cruelty, their obsession with the mystery of blood and death, their sensitivity to the beauty of flowers, birds and gems, their strength of religious feeling—strong to the point of suicide—their excellent practical organization of the state, their attachment to their land and their maize, which still did not keep their eyes from turning continually to the stars—with all this, these ancient Mexicans were civilized men. Their culture, so suddenly destroyed, is one of those that humanity can be proud of having created.” –Jacques Soustelle, French anthropologist SECONDARY- This is a anthropologist (someone who studies the history of people) talking about the past.

Document F Monstrous: The cuauhxicalli eagle dating 1502, which features a circular cavity on his back used for sacrificial offerings

Document F Monstrous: The cuauhxicalli eagle dating 1502, which features a circular cavity on his back used for sacrificial offerings PRIMARY- This is an original artifact.

Document G Tenochtitlan: Hernando Cortes's map of the city, 1524

Document G Tenochtitlan: Hernando Cortes's map of the city, 1524 PRIMARY- This is an original artifact.

Document H A model of reconstructed Tenochtitlán is featured at the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City. Credit: National Museum of Anthropology

Document H A model of reconstructed Tenochtitlán is featured at the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City. Credit: National Museum of Anthropology SECONDARY- This is a model based off of someone’s interpretation of how Tenochtitlan looked before Spanish Conquest.