This skull-shaped mask was made to be used in a ritual involving the Aztec god of death.

As the Aztec death god and Lord of the Underworld, Mictlantecuhtli (aka Mictlan) governed cosmic balance by ensuring every life cycle culminated in death. Fun Fact: Xoloitzcuintle Mexican hairless ...

Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Day of the Dead might sound like a solemn affair, but Mexico’s famous holiday is actually a lively commemoration of the departed.

"Part of the recovering languages and literacies of the Americas publication initiative." "Following their first contact in 1519, accounts of Aztecs identifying Spaniards as gods proliferated. But ...