gant humility of their giving.' 9. To the Spaniards, Cortes in particular `He interpreted the offerings as gestures of submission,or as a naive attempt at bribery.' 10. Clendinnen then goes on to state that the Mexica people found the Spanish to be odd in their views of warfare. The Mexica had their first encounter with Horses when Cortes arrived at Tenochtitlan, and the `Indians were to extend a respect for the courage of the horses that they were never to grant their masters.' 11. The Spanish brought many guns and items of war with them but the most devastating was smallpox. It's effects lasted for `60 daysigns' 12. and must of scared the Mexica badly as they believed that the gods would punish them with skin diseases.The way in which Clendinnen writes, her format of essays, allows the reader to obtain an understanding of each section of Mexica society, from the lowly prostitute to honoured warrior, and see how it viewed and took part in the rituals of human sacrifice. Clendinnen's only mistake, though small it would improve the quality of work, is not enough pictures or photos. A few photos of Tenochtitlan and warriors headdresses, clubs and obsidian blades would increase the pleasure 10 fold. Also in places the author tends to divert to other Ameriindian cultures and use their ritual practices as examples. These comparisons can bring the ritual practices of a 500 year extant culture into modern day belief.Inga Clendinnen's Aztecs:An Interpretation is an outstanding book dealing with investigations into how the Mexica peoples may have veiwed the world in which they lived. From the daily life of a commoner to the explosively, awe inspiring lives of the priests and warriors. Clendinnen has used thoughtful insights and a fresh perspective that will have general readers and specialist readers alike engaged in a powerful and elegantly written interpretation that is hard to put down without reflection upon this lost culture....
