BFF-05 Gold bar found in Mexico was Aztec treasure: study

211

ZCZC

BFF-05

MEXICO-HISTORY-ARCHAEOLOGY

Gold bar found in Mexico was Aztec treasure: study

MEXICO CITY, Jan 11, 2020 (BSS/AFP) – A gold bar found in a Mexico City
park in 1981 was part of the Aztec treasure looted by Hernan Cortes and the
Spanish conquistadors 500 years ago, a new study says.

The 1.93-kilogram bar was found by a construction worker during
excavations for a new building along the Alameda, a picturesque park in the
heart of the Mexican capital.

For 39 years, its origins remained a mystery.

But thanks to specialized X-rays, Mexico’s National Institute of
Anthropology and History (INAH) says it has now confirmed where the bar came
from: the Spaniards’ hasty, though temporary, retreat during the so-called
“Noche Triste,” or “Sad Night.”

That night — June 30, 1520 — the Aztecs, furious over the slaughter of
their nobles and priests, drove the Spanish invaders from their capital,
Tenochtitlan.

The conquistadors escaped with as much looted Aztec treasure as they could
carry, including, apparently, the gold bar in question.

“The so-called ‘Noche Triste’ is among the episodes of the conquest that
will be remembered this year, and there is only one piece of material
evidence from it: a gold bar that sank 500 years ago in the canals of
Tenochtitlan, and which recent analysis confirms came from the (Spaniards’)
flight,” INAH said in a statement.

Cortes and his men received a wary welcome from Aztec emperor Moctezuma
when they arrived in 1519, but soon became unwanted guests at the palace as
they appropriated his treasure and turned him into a virtual hostage.

In June 1520, Cortes — who had launched his expedition in Mexico without
official authorization — learned that the Spanish governor in Cuba had sent
a party of soldiers to arrest him.

He left his lieutenant Pedro de Alvarado in charge at Tenochtitlan and
went with part of his army to fight the arriving soldiers, ultimately
defeating them.

While he was gone, however, Alvarado began to fear the Aztecs would attack
him, and had their nobles and priests killed.

The Aztecs revolted, and the Spaniards retreated — apparently losing the
gold bar along the way.

The study found the bar’s composition matched that of other Aztec pieces
from the period.

“This bar is a key piece in the puzzle of this historical event,” INAH
said.

BSS/AFP/SSS/0854 hrs