Aztec Coins

No, the Aztecs did not have coinage (their main form of currency was the cacao bean), but the coins of modern Mexico are replete with symbolism taken from the famous Aztec Sun Stone.  

Alejandro sent me a video detailing the use of Aztec motifs on their coins.  The video is in Spanish, so I will give you the information here in English, along with pictures that I found of the Mexican coins.

We will start with the 10 peso coin...

  
On the back of the coin you see the circle of the sun which appears in the center of the Aztec Sun Stone.  There you see the sun god, Tonatiuh.  His tongue is in the form of a sacrificial knife because he is thirsty for the human blood which gives him the strength to be reborn each morning.

Next, the 5 peso coin...

Along the outer edge of the back of the coin is the 'Xiuhcóatl", the serpent ring, which also appears on the Sun Stone.


The 2 peso coin...

Along the edge of this coin are 10 of the 20 symbols used for the days which make up an Aztec month.  (There were 18 months.  18 x 20 = 360 + 5 unlucky days at the end of the year = 365)  The twenty symbols appear in a ring on the Sun Stone, and for this reason the sculpture is mistakenly referred to as the Aztec Calendar Stone.

The day symbols which are shown on the coin are (beginning at the top)…
Xochitl - flower
Tecpatl - flint
Ollin - movement
Cuauhtli - eagle
Océlotl - jaguar
Atl - water
Acatl - reed
Miquiztli - death
Cóatl - serpent
Calli - house

Finally, the 1 peso coin...

Around the edge is the "quincunce", the ring of shining, which represents the rays of the sun.  It also represents the cardinal points of the compass, and those points also represent the thorns with which Aztec priests would perform bloodletting ceremonies upon themselves.

So, if you have some Mexican coins, take a close look and observe the symbolism of the Aztecs.