Global Crystals Blog

The Stones of the Aztecs

The Aztecs originated from the Atzlan lands of North Mexico, where they were a humble people just managing to scrape an existence together. About 700 years ago their great Prophet Tenoch guided the Aztecs from their homelands and headed into Anahuac, also known as the Valley of Mexico.

Tenoch had a vision in which he was guided by Huitzilopochtli to search for a site in Ahhuac near to a lake. Huitzilopochtili told him that the site would be indicated by an Eagle perched upon a cactus, growing from a rock or cave surrounded by water. Sure enough Tenoch found an Eagle perched on a catus on a swampy island in the middle of Lake Texcoco.

Driven by their Prophet Tenoch and the messages from the great god Huitzilopochtili the Aztecs undertook the difficult task of building their new city. They began the construction of Tenochtitlan in 1325. As the City grew so did the skill and creativity of the Aztec artisans. By 1376 the city had become a magnet, attracting all kinds of people to unite under the Aztec banner. Temples were built and they honoured the gods for their kindness.

Soon the Aztecs turned their skills to the delicate work of carving crystals and precious metals. Their favourites included Turquoise, which was highly abundant in the local area. The Aztecs believed this stone was linked to the Sun, who according to legend chased the Moon and Stars from the sky with the help of a Turquoise serpent. The Aztecs even named their gods after the power of their favourite Turquoise. The name of the fire god, Xiuhtecuhtli, means “ master of turquoise “ and the name of their god of war, Vitzilopochtili, means “ prince of turquoise.”

Turquoise can come in a variety colours from green to blue to white. Sleeping Beauty Turquoise is a type of turquoise available today, which has the most vibrant blue colour. White turquoise is very rare and can be found occasionally in Native American Jewellery. The finest native American jewellery exhibits amazing skill and inlays many different stones into Silver and gold. The Zuni tribe truly demonstrate the quality of carving that is still inspired today by the great Aztec craftsmen.

Turquoise is an amazing stone with a delightful energy. Turquoise encourages us to speak our minds and also to live our lives and dreams to the full. Turquoise encourages us to be more creative both in our thinking and our actions. It soothes the nervous system and the throat and sharpens the sight. This stone is great to wear regularly, especially when we are under the weather and in need of a little protection. Continued use of turquoise will bring about an increased positivity, greater compassion and increased joie de vivre.

It is no wonder that being surrounded by the largest and finest Turquoise in the world, that creativity and skill blossomed so artfully in the Aztec civilisation. The Aztecs also loved to work with Obsidian, especially rainbow and gold sheen obsidian. They carved the most amazing statuettes and faces inlaid with Turquoise and Pink Coral. The finest pieces of obsidian carving come from the end of the Aztec period. Obsidian is a supremely useful stone which was used extensively by Aztec peoples. Obsidian is regularly used as knives, arrowheads, axes, bowls and jewellery. The Aztec Shaman used Obsidian mirrors to scry into. Through scrying they were able to look into the past and the future.

The abundance of Obsidian is certainly one of the reasons that that the Aztec Civilisation became so advanced. Areas that are rich in obsidian, a type of volcanic glass, have a great fire energy, which is the perfect energy for creativity to flourish and civilisation building to succeed.

The Rainbow Obsidian in Mexico is the best in the world. It is jet black in colour and when it is exposed to bright light, it is possible to see the most vivid neon colours reflected in its surface. The neon colours include pink, yellow, green, purple and gold. The rarest of colours found in rainbow obsidian is neon blue. Rainbow Obsidian brings balance and harmony and invites us to embrace all aspects of ourselves and become more whole.

It is a real shame that the Aztec King Montezuma perceived the Invading Spaniard Cortes as a friend and not the threat that he turned out to be. In the final days before the attacks of the Spanish, King Montezuma gave gifts of exquisite beauty to his foes. Montezuma gave Cortes a mask incrusted with turquoise that depicted two intertwined serpents, a crozier inlaid with a mosaic of Turquoise and also ending in a serpents head, which can now be found in the British Museum. Evidently this Turquoise and Obsidian mask was used in connection with the worship of Quaetzlcoatl. It is a tragic end to the Aztec civilisation when they believed Cortes to be a re-incarnation of their god Quaetzlcoatl. . It is easy to see that when the Spanish arrived, the Aztecs were at the height of their civilisation.

Mario 2006