Mesolore
NEH Summer Scholar Elise Weisenbach (2010) recommends we consult Mesolore, a wonderful set of resources for use in teaching by Liza Bakewell and Byron Hamann.
Mexicolore
Another rich site with many resources is Mexicolore, developed by Graciela Sánchez and Ian Mursell, in the United Kingdom. The Aztecs are a favorite culture group on this website. The editors have enticed many scholars to give snapshots of their research that will be intelligible to students, such as this page on Health, or Poetry, among many others.
Getty Exhibit on the Aztecs
NEH Summer Scholar Lisa Sragovicz (2010) points us to the Getty Villa’s online exhibit and interactive educational materials under the title, “The Aztec Pantheon and the Art of Empire,” a show in southern California that will be open March 24–July 5, 2010. Sponsored by J. P. Morgan, the corresponding website has components in both English and Spanish and reproduces excerpts from primary sources, such as the Florentine Codex.
Goddess Tlazolteotl (Florentine Codex)
A slideshow on line provides highlights of the exhibition. An interactive site allows the visitor to explore two Aztec deities. This page provides a close look at six scenes from the Florentine Codex, also known as the Historia general de las cosas de Nueva España. The Getty also provides a map of the Aztec empire.
PBS Conquistadors
PBS often provides educational materials to accompany its videos. This website about Spanish conquerors, “Conquistadors,” includes examinations of Mexico, Peru, Amazonia, and North America. The section on Mexico includes sub-units “Cortés,” on “Moctezuma and the Aztecs,” “Cortés and the Spanish,” the “Legacy of the Conquest,” a timeline of conquest, Michael Wood’s journals of his travels retracing the conquerors’ journeys, a section called “What do you think?” and a teaching guide.
PBS Aztec Massacre
This is a 52-minute streaming video that is part of a series, “Secrets of the Dead,” that has as its focus an archaeological find of 400 skeletons dating from the time of the Spanish conquest of Mexico. Additional information about the program is also available on line, such as this press release.
Nova’s Cracking the Maya Code
This is the PBS program that narrates the recent progress made in deciphering Maya glyphs. A Nova websites provides a preview from the documentary, plus educational supplements such as a description of the TV program, recommended links and books, a teacher’s guide, “Time Line of Decipherment,” “A Masterpiece Revealed” (about a mural), “Decode Stela 3” (details with audio), a “Map of the Maya World,” and “Speaking Ancient Maya” (a podcast about the language of the ancient people). One can also stream the program, chapter by chapter, from this web page. Cracking the Maya Code is also available in seven parts in YouTube and in a full version, with advertisements at the start.