Banqueta Policromada

The Mexicas took the important past of the Tolteca people, of which they claimed to be the heirs, recreating certain architectural elements and sculptural styles that prevailed in previous years in the city of Tula. An example of this practice is this bench found in the area of Templo Mayor in Tenochtitlan that imitates almost identically the one that decorates the Quemado Palace in the Tolteca capital.The bench is formed by a sequence of square volcanic rock plaques carved with polychromatic images that represent a procession of warriors coming on both flanks to the center, where is a grass ball, called zacatapayolli, stuck with blood stained thorns or punches for self-sacrifice. The top part of this piece is finished by a carved border with the image of winding feathers serpents.The tablets were rescued at the beginning of the 20th century in the Templo Mayor in the Tenochtitlan area; a later finding in situ of equal benches inside the House of the Eagles, at Sacred Precinct of Tenochtitlan, indicates that these elements were built inside the quarters and on top of them were placed monumental sculptures.Arqlga. Bertina Olmedo Vera