Eagle warrior sculpture, ca. 1440–1469

Archaeologists excavated this sculpture in the Main Temple of the Aztecs in their capital city Tenochtitlan, located where Mexico City is today. The Aztecs (also known as the Mexica) had an empire that dominated Mesoamerica in the 14th and 15th centuries.

The sculpture represents an eagle warrior, a highly feared elite military soldier. The Aztecs considered eagles a symbol of the sun and linked them with the god of war. Eagle warriors attained their high status by taking many prisoners. They wore eagle costumes and quilted cotton armor in battle.

The life-sized sculpture is more than five-and-a-half-feet tall. The sculptor constructed it with several pieces of hollow fired clay. Raised stucco shapes representing an eagle’s feathers cover the figure’s body. Some of these sculpted feathers have been lost over time. Wings, talons, and a headdress complete the costume. The warrior’s hands are positioned in a way that suggests they may have held model weapons at one time. His body is oriented fully frontward, with no contrapposto (twisting, or off-balance position) in his stance.

The artist uses shape, volume, and negative space, enhancing the sculpture’s realism. Deep shadows from the open beak envelop the face, framing it as the focal point. The feathers are individually raised, casting shadows and creating an overall pattern and texture. The spiky talons, near the figure’s knees, protrude into space, and the wavelike pattern of feathers on the edge of the wings delineates the negative space with energetic movement. Crisp edges and deep shadows emphasize the sculpture’s contour lines. From a side view, the warrior bends forward slightly, as if ready to jump. The headdress is shaped like an eagle’s head, with large eyes and a feathered crest. The sculpture’s open stance and its dynamic interaction with the surrounding negative space animate it.

The warrior’s features and facial piercings are molded in high relief with deep lines, but their smooth, stylized appearance presents them as a general representation of a person instead of a specific individual. Similarly, the artist simplifies the details on the fingernails, individually bent knuckles, sandals, and toes. Identical, overlapping feathers appear in a streamlined pattern. Despite their generalization, these details give the warrior’s body a realistic appearance.

• Describe the artist’s use of negative space.
  (The artist juxtaposes negative and positive space, suggesting movement and creating theatrical shadows. Dark shadows appear inside the eagle’s beak and under the warrior’s rounded belly. Smaller shadows show the details in the man’s features and the feathers’ texture.)

• How does the artist represent the fierceness associated with the eagle warriors?
  (The warrior’s garments were intended to scare opponents on the battlefield. The artist visually emphasizes the powerful wings with a bold patterned edge. The deeply molded shape of the open beak creates heavy, dramatic shadows. Each of these details is a reference to a real warrior’s costume.)
  

• How does the artist render the details?
  (The artist stylizes much of the sculpture, simplifying the details. He or she sculpts nearly symmetrical features, smooth skin, and feathers indicated by repeated shapes. The curling feathers on the wings’ edges are abstracted, showing their shape in a fanciful, stylized, and energetic design.)

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