The Aztecs have a reputation less as a civilizing force than as the barbaric practitioners of human sacrifice. Yet their achievements are impressive: within 100 years they established the largest empire in Central American history, and at Tenochtitlan actually built a city in a lake. Richard Townsend aims to present a rounded portrait of the Aztecs, reconciling the contradictory aspects of their culture. After considering the Spanish conquest, he charts the rise of the Aztecs from humble nomads to empire builders. He shows how human sacrifice was used as an instrument of terror, but was also believed to ensure fertility of the land and renewal of the seasons. Recent archaeological discoveries are interwoven with studies of monuments, Spanish records and illustrated codices in order to produce a comprehensive history of a remarkable people.