SocietyNorth America

Tenochtitlan founded

Jan 1325

A city built on an island in a lake, with floating fields

In depth

Chinampas are among the most productive farming systems ever devised, and some are still cultivated at Xochimilco. The city had aqueducts, dykes against brackish water, public sanitation and a market the Spanish described as larger than any in Europe. The Aztec empire was a tribute system rather than a territorial state.

For children

The Mexica built their city on an island in Lake Texcoco. They made fields by piling mud and plants on wicker frames in the water — chinampas — which yielded several harvests a year. The city grew larger than any in Europe.

Connects to

Tenochtitlan fallsAug 8, 1521
The ToltecsJan 900 – Jan 1150
Teotihuacán100 – 550
Maize domesticated in Mexico7,001 BCE

Part of Terra Saga — the story of Earth on a timeline. terrasaga.org