Jaguar Warriors

Armed with macuahuitl, the fearless nobles of the jaguar warriors are frightening in assault.

As members of a people who worshiped the god of war, all Aztec men received military training during their youth and could be called up to fight in the ruler’s military campaigns. This regular exposure to violence led to a society where social rank was determined based on the individual’s military prowess. Elite professional troops were recruited in one of two army corps: the jaguar warriors or the eagle warriors, who had a social status close to that of the nobility. All were war-hardened soldiers that had proven themselves by their ability to take prisoners on the battlefield. For the Aztecs, the aim of war was to defeat enemy troops and bring as many prisoners as possible to Tenochtitlan to be sacrificed. In addition to cotton armor and a macahuitl, an obsidian sword, the jaguar warriors would wear jaguar skins and were allowed to participate in sacrificial combat.