The Templo Mayor (Great Temple) was the spiritual and physical centre of the Aztec world. The building dominated the city of Mexico-Tenochtitlan and its population of 250,000 people. The original structure dates from 1325, the year the Aztecs founded the city. At the apex of this massive structure stood two shrines, one dedicated to the supreme god Huitzilopochtli, and the other to Tlaloc, the rain god. Both shrines were reached by a large central staircase.

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