Preparing for the Quincentennial

As I explained in this morning's post today is the 500th anniversary of the fall of the Aztec capital to the Spanish.  I went yesterday to see what was going on at the city's main plaza, the Zócalo.  I did not want to go to the events being held today because I did not want to be in an enormous crowd of people.  As it turns out, I probably would not have been able to see the ceremonies anyways since, due to the pandemic, admission was highly limited.  Even yesterday there were police barriers blocking all of the streets leading into the Zócalo.  I told a little white lie, said that I was headed to the Gran Hotel which faces the plaza, and the police let me through.  

So this is what I found on the Zócalo...  

A model of the Templo Mayor, the main Aztec temple has been constructed for the occasion.  Workers were still putting the last finishing touches to it.

The excavated remains of the actual temple are just a block away.  The real thing of course was much bigger,  In the early 16th century when the Spanish arrived, it may have towered 200 feet above the Aztec capital.  This replica is only 50 feet high, but it is still quite impressive.  The two shrines at the top were dedicated to Tlaloc, the rain god (to the left) and Huiztilopochtli, the god of war and the sun.  

The Zócalo was decked out with decorations inspired by pre-Hispanic motifs.

While I was standing there, a group of people dressed in pre-Hispanic attire came marching around the Zócalo.

I followed them around to the other side of the plaza and discovered that there were already a large number of similar groups congregated there.  These people were all members of "conchero" associations, organizations which seek to preserve pre-Hispanic ceremonies and dances.  Most of the members are just ordinary city folks.  I would doubt that many of them even speak Nahuatl, the Aztec language.  They dress up in attire and perform rituals inspired by the indigenous civilizations (but not necessarily 100% authentic).  Many of them say that they find spiritual enlightenment from their participation in these ceremonies.

There were probably several hundred "concheros", and a fair number of spectators as well.  I tried to stay on the sidelines and out of the crowd.  Here are some pictures and videos that I managed to take.

 

 Ritual purification with incense

 An offering on the pavement with flowers, fruits and sand paintings

Behind it a line of drummer

The various "conchero" organizations are identified by colorful banners.

I left before the dancing, which can go on for hours, began.

At one corner of the plaza is a bust honoring Cuauhtémoc, the last Aztec emperor.  Someone had placed a bouquet of flowers at the statue.

In Mexico, the Spanish are viewed as the bad guys, the Aztecs as the good guys.  You will not see any monuments to the  Spanish conquistador Cortés, but plenty of statues of Aztec chieftains.  Some parents even give their children Aztec names.  It is quite ironic, since the Aztecs were just as imperialistic as the Spanish.  The tribes that the Aztecs conquered and the prisoners taken during wars with their enemies served as fodder for the continual human sacrifices that their religion demanded.  Numerous tribes allied themselves with and fought alongside the Spanish to defeat the people that they viewed as their oppressors.  In fact Cortés probably would not have defeated the Aztecs without the help of those tribes.

Equally ironic is how Mexico's indigenous roots are honored and even glorified, while the present-day indigenous peoples remain the underdogs of Mexican society... even today under the current populist President who makes such a big deal about being a man of the people.

These two pieces of graffiti on the Zócalo tell the real story...

Commemoration of the original peoples?

500 years!!

Displacement

Discrimination

Murders

Exploitation

Injustice

The indigenous peoples are admired in the museums, 

but in real life they are marginalized.