Science: Moon Goddess

Uncovering Coyolxauhqui

When public utility repair crews digging at a busy Mexico City street corner in February made their find, it created an instant sensation. Rumors arose that the long-lost treasure of Montezuma II, the Aztec emperor at the time of the Spanish conquest, had finally been located. As archaeologists roped off the site, indignant Mexicans protested: "We have a right to the gold. We pay our taxes."

What the workmen found was not gold, but a treasure nonetheless. It has now been identified as a huge pre-Columbian bas-relief of the Aztec moon goddess Coyolxauhqui. Probably sculpted in the early 15th century, the...

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