This is the first part of a well-made series about the Aztec world in the “Fall of Civilizations” documentaries.  This episode explains the Aztec civilization at the point in time before it was first contacted by Europeans, recreating what the Aztec world looked like in great detail.

[Note: (Edited on May 5, 2021)— This documentary does a great job of explaining how incredibly sophisticated the Aztec society was.  I think it is fascinating that they became so developed without the benefit of having contact with other cultures.  Also, while the Aztecs are often known for their sacrificial rituals, people should realize that of course most other cultures had brutal aspects as well, such as gladiator fighting in the Roman Coliseum.]

Following are points from this episode:

— The documentary starts by explaining how the geography of the region of Mexico developed since the time of the dinosaurs, followed by the migration of humans into North America and then into Central America.

— The original Mayan civilizations in Guatemala which were eventually abandoned are mentioned.

— A Spanish Friar named Bernardino de Sahagún who is thought of as “the first anthropologist” recorded accounts of the Mayans in a book called “A General History of the Things of New Spain” in the mid-1500’s.

- Another Monk named Diego Durán wrote a book called “The History of the Indies of New Spain.”

— Indigenous men such as Fernando de Alva Cortés Ixtlilxóchitl, who is descended from the last Aztec King, also wrote accounts in the late 1500’s.

— At 1300 AD, the southern Mayan cities in Guatemala had been abandoned and people were living around and on lake Texcoco in what is now Mexico City, with the “Mexicas” being newcomers in the area from the north who were looked upon as being a “rough bunch,” and they were not accepted unless they served as mercenaries.

— After twenty years the Mexicas decided to built their homes on a marshy island on the lake since it was not inhabited, and in two hundred years it would grow to be one of the world’s greatest cities named “Tenochtitlan” which was similar to Venice, Italy in many respects.

— They built artificial islands in the lake by driving large wooden stakes in the ground.

— Many migratory birds came to the lake in the winter, which the indians harvested.  Other abundant food sources they utilized are explained as well, such as growing bean, corn, and squash, and harvesting many types of fish and animals around the lake.

— They constructed sophisticated aqueducts to bring spring water and constructed dykes to control the water levels in the lake.

— They even had zoos in their city which later amazed the visiting Spanish Conquistadors, who had never seen such a thing.

— Drinking alcohol was forbidden but people did it anyway, and people consumed hallucinogenic mushrooms.

— People traded in vast marketplaces in the northern part of the city.

— The Aztecs continued to practice ritual human sacrifice on a large scale, and warriors captured prisoners to be sacrificed rather than killing them in battle.

— The documentary explains the interesting political situation at the time where the Aztecs wrestled control from a faction that previously ruled from the shores of the lake after a two year war in the 1428 AD, followed by a vast expansion of the Aztec Empire to both coasts in a kingdom of six million people.

— This episode of the documentary closes with a segment explaining the various reasons for the differences that exist between the cultures in the Americas and ones in Europe and Asia.