[NorthstarMom]

I wondered how much they knew as we see through history that the further people are from God, the more ignorant they become. We have a dvd set of a history conference, the “Message From the Mayans” was fascinating. They were an evil culture-the conquistadors’ description of the priests was vivid and awful.

[Caipirabob]

They were capable of performing successful basic neurosurgery as long as it wasn't too invasive beyond the surface of the brain itself. I would recommend a book called "Aztec" by Gary Jennings. You can buy in 2nd hand on Amazon for pennies. It's about the Aztec culture just prior, during and in it's twilight during the Spanish conquest of their nation.

The book is written from the perspective of the Papal records and then from the point of view of one of the surviving Aztec scribes. Brutal story, but rich in well researched facts.

Fascinating culture, great food and as my lovely wife is descended of the Chibcha people, I've got a personal connection in researching what history wasn't completely destroyed by the Spaniards.

[Texan5]

“They were an evil culture-the conquistadors’ description of the priests was vivid and awful”

The name conquistador means “conqueror”-bad start for an unbiased account...

One of my cousins is married to an archaeologist-a Paleo-Indian expert, and my first husband and I used his provided itineraries to visit ruins in Mexico on many vacations in the past. With all due respect-the interactions of those two ethnic groups and their cultures was rather like the pot meeting the kettle-the conquistadors were pretty competitive in the evil category, what with the inquisition going on and all-they certainly weren’t close to the God I believe in as a Catholic...

The only difference I’ve ever seen between the two is that the Aztecs and Mayas preferred carving the heart out of a living victim as a method of execution, while the Spaniards-priests and conquistadors alike-preferred to either put them to the sword or burn them alive as heretics after a nice torture session-not much of a choice...

By the time my ancestors got to Mexico from Spain a century or so later, the native Americans weren’t doing that sort of thing, but the Spaniards were still merrily torturing and burning people-which is likely the reason my Basque antecedents left in the first place-Basques were rebellious and not popular with the Spanish crown most of the time-my ancestors or not, Spaniards/conquistadors were a cruel, bloody bunch...

[esquirette]

I would love to have that set! I was a Spanish major in college and love learning about the history of Latin America. For example, probably everyone knows that part of the reason Cortez was successful was that he allied with local tribes who were sick of the Aztecs.