The people of Tenochtitlan had successfully defended from the Spanish-Tlaxcalteca attack, but the six-week battle had taken an enormous toll. Corpses flooded the streets and canals, leaders, priests, and warriors had been slain, and the holiest of temples had been desecrated. As soon as the invaders retreated, residents assiduously worked to heal the city. Cleaning was the first priority: the city was not only exposed to the toxicity of decaying bodies and filth of war, but it had also been exposed for months to the Spanish, whose conspicuous smell and filth was perceived as a toxic health treat.
This image illustrates the cleaning efforts of Tenochtitlan after the invaders’ retreat. It depicts the sweeping of the Holy Temple, a crucial task for restoring physical and spiritual order. The purifying efforts lasted for several weeks, during which the god Huitzilopochtli was removed from its seat atop the temple. Only after the cleansing was complete was the god restored to its throne, and the city celebrated with music and dances in August 1520. In September, Montezuma’s brother, Cuitlahuac, was crowned as the new emperor. Sacredness, health, and normalcy had seemingly returned to the imperial jewel. But unknown to all, and despite the cleaning precautions, the Spanish had already triggered a devastating epidemic outbreak that would bring the city’s magnificent ruling to an end.
Image Source
- Florence, Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana, MS Mediceo Palatino 220 (Florentine Codex), book 12, fol. 51v (3:458v). Courtesy of the Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana.
Further Reading
- Dufendach, Rebecca. “Nahua and Spanish Concepts of Health and Disease in Colonial Mexico, 1519–1615.” PhD diss., University of California, Los Angeles, 2017.
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