Aztec Weapons: The Tools of the Trade for an Aztec Warrior

For two centuries, the Aztec military was nearly invincible. For that reason, their empire quickly expanded across central Mexico. And even when Moctezuma’s empire eventually fell to the Spanish invaders, their defeat had more to do with smallpox brought in by the Europeans than the might of the Aztec army or the Aztec weapons which they wielded. 

So let’s explore the dangerous Aztec armory that helped to make them such a force. 

Thrusting Aztec Weapons

What I’ve categorized here as thrusting weapons are probably the most badass pieces of Aztec weaponry that existed. These weapons were used in close quarters, hand-to-hand combat, and could do some serious damage.

Macuahuitl, the Obsidian and Wooden Sword of Aztec Warriors

The macuahuitl, wielded by the elite warriors of the Aztec army, stood out as a formidable weapon in the Aztec armory. Despite its seemingly less imposing appearance compared to the iron swords of the Old World, the macuahuitl was a force to be reckoned with, earning it a fearsome reputation among the conquistadors during the Spanish conquest.

Divided into two variants, the one-handed macuahuitl measured approximately 3 to 4 inches in width and just over three feet in length. Meanwhile, the two-handed version, standing as tall as a man and boasting a width of around four inches, demanded exceptional skill from Aztec warriors to effectively wield it.¹

Crafted by skilled artisans, this Aztec sword featured a robust wooden body, often made from oak. The outer edge was intricately carved with grooves, accommodating razor-sharp obsidian blades. Some macuahuitls had blades arranged closely, forming a smooth cutting surface, while others left deliberate gaps, creating a serrated quality. The blades were secured in place using bitumen and turtle dung glue as adhesives.²

In battle, the macuahuitl proved its efficacy to such an extent that even Spanish conquistadors acknowledged its superiority over European swords. Despite their best efforts, the Spaniards found it nearly impossible to break the obsidian blades, a fact that, reluctantly, even the conquistadors admitted.³ Such admissions of inferiority were a rare occurrence among the proud Spanish invaders.

Thrusting Spears

Next up in the list of dealy Aztec weapons that an elite warrior brandished in battle was the thrusting spear, or tepoztopilli in Nahuatl. These spears were as long as a person was tall, coming in at an average of 5.5 feet (1.67 meters). 

Similar to lances in European warfare, these spears would have been used to keep thrust and cut at the enemy, while keeping a somewhat safe distance (or, at least out of the range of their macuahuitls).

The tepoztopilli was a two part construction: a long, wooden shaft topped with a spear head that had razor sharp obsidian blades running its full length. 

These weapons were extremely effective in combat. Díaz del Castillo, a conquistador who fought the Aztec army during the Spanish conquest, noted that an Aztec spear pierced his metal armor. Had it not been for the thick layer of cotton he wore under his suit of armor, del Castillo would have been killed by a tepoztopilli.⁴

Clubs

Among the thrusting Aztec weapons used for hand-to-hand combat, the clubs were the easiest and cheapest to make. Aztec war clubs did not include the obsidian blades that made the macuahuitls or tepoztopilli so deadly. The omission of this expensive material meant that the lower ranks of the Aztec army could afford to use these weapons. 

The lack of obsidian, however, did not mean that war clubs were bad weapons. In fact, it was quite the opposite. Aztec warriors knew exactly how to wield these clubs in order to gain an advantage over an opposing army.

Interestingly, war clubs came in three varieties⁵:

• Cuauhololli: These were wooden clubs, with a ball on the end. They could be deadly when swung down on an enemy. But, their upward swing was less effective.
• Huitzauhqui: These clubs would have resembled the cuauhololli, but they also had sharpened stones embedded in them to make them more dangerous.
• Macuahuitzoctli: These war clubs were similar to the European “morning star.” The head of the club had a piece of wood protruding from each of its four sides, with a point at the top.

Projectile Aztec Weapons

During major battles, Aztec armies began their offensive with a barrage of arrows, spears, and other projectiles. While the nobles of Aztec society engaged in hand-to-hand combat to capture enemies and win glory for themselves, the tide of the battle could be truly shifted by projectile weapons.

Bow and Arrow

A weapon known the world-over, bows and arrows made a frequent appearance in Aztec warfare.

Known as tlahuitolli in Nahuatl, Aztec bows measured 5 feet (1.5 meters) long, and were made with deerskin or animal-sinew bowstrings. These bows were then paired with arrows made from reed shafts and tipped with stone or obsidian points. 

While this Aztec weapon sounds simple, it was a force on the battlefield, especially when used by a group of archers. Spanish chroniclers noted how the stone and obsidian arrowheads could easily penetrate the cotton armor of opposing forces. Bernal Díaz del Castillo, a Spanish conquistador, also recorded that the Aztec arrows made from obsidian shards even inflicted damage on the heavy armor of the Spanish forces.⁶

Atlatl, aka Spear Thrower

The atlatl was by far the most dangerous of the Aztecs’ long-range weaponry. And, it was the most ancient. Originally developed in the late Ice Age, archaeologists have discovered atlatls on every habitable content. Replaced by the bow and arrow in Europe, Africa, and Asia, the atlatl continued to be used to hunt and fight in Australia and the Americas.⁷

By Aztec times, the atlatl had become a fixture of Mesoamerican warfare. But what was an atlatl?

An atlatl was a device that allowed someone to throw a spear (or “dart”) faster and farther than they could by hand. The type used by Aztec warriors was roughly two feet in length, with a groove to hold the spear, and finger loops on one end to help the warrior grip the weapon. Some atlatls have been found that could throw two arrows at once, but the dominant form seems to have been able to hold a single dart.⁸

The spears that went with the atlatl had several different constructions. Some were simply sharpened to a point, while others were fire-hardened or even tipped with obsidian, flint, or bone, or copper. Some variants of these bolts came with two or three prongs – imagine getting hit with that!

Remember how I said atlalts were dangerous? Surviving accounts from conquistadors in both Mexico and Florida said that an atlatl dart could penetrate through the leather-and-cotton-based armor of many Spaniards, as well as the cotton armor of Aztec soldiers. Some even claimed that atlatls could penetrate the suits of armor worn by the weather conquistadors (though archaeologists and historians now debate whether that particular feat was possible).⁹

How atlatls were used in battle depended on the size of the army wielding them. Among large armies, such as the forces put forward by the Aztec Empire at its height, the atlatl was used to disrupt enemy formations. The goal was to break enemy lines from a distance, making it easier to advance and win in hand-to-hand combat.¹⁰

Stone Slings

While it might sound simple, you shouldn’t sleep on the stone sling. Known as tematlatl in Nahuatl, Aztec slings were made from fibers harvested from maguey plants. Slings were made by weaving two long chords that were then sewn onto either side of a pouch. In this pouch, Aztec slingers placed carefully crafted stones. 

While we do not have exact data on this Aztec weapon, historians have used comparisons to other civilizations through time that used stone slings as part of their armies. Based on these comparisons, Aztec slingers could have fired a stone upwards of 600 feet (200 meters)!¹¹

As you can imagine, a perfectly round stone, thrown with enough force to travel across two football fields, could do quite a bit of damage. Indeed, the Spanish recorded how these slings inflicted serious damage, even to those wearing metal armor.¹²

Defensive Aztec Weapons

While shields and armor don’t typically come to mind when we think of weapons, they occupied an important place in the Aztec arsenal. No Aztec soldier would have walked into battle without a least one, if not both, of these pieces of equipment. 

Round Shields

In Aztec culture, there were two types of shields: war shields (yaochimalli) and ceremonial shields (mahuzyochimalli).¹³ Since this is an article about Aztec weapons, we’ll focus on the war shields.

Aztec war shields were made with a wide variety of materials. Examples of shields from the historical record include those made from woven cane, wood, and bamboo. All yaochimalli, no matter the material, were round. Once the shield was made, it was decorated with feathers, painted animal skins, or gold and silver foils. The type of ornamentation used on the shield depended on the status and wealth of the soldier for whom it was made.¹⁴

War shields also had a row of long feathers hanging from the bottom, with each feather reaching around 8 inches in length. While feathers played an important role in Aztec culture as a symbol of power and strength, the yaochimalli’s feathers were also practical. This row of hanging feathers served as protection from stray arrows and stones, and could even have slowed or deflected an atlatl dart that had lost speed.¹⁵

Mostly, though, shields would have come into play during hand-to-hand combat. They would have been highly effective at helping the elite Aztec warriors who fought with macuahuitls deflect incoming blows from enemies’ swords. And, in a pinch, Aztec soldiers could even have turned their shields into offensive weapons, striking the enemy with them.¹⁶

Body Armor

In the heat of Aztec battles, warriors prioritized protecting their core over their limbs, donning armor that differed significantly from the head-to-toe iron suits worn by Eurasian knights and soldiers of the same era.

At the forefront of Aztec armament was the ichcahuipilli, a crucial piece crafted from quilted cotton. Despite the seemingly lightweight material, this armor, widely utilized across Mesoamerica, offered substantial protection. The ingenious construction involved sewing two layers of unspun cotton between an outer shell of cloth, reinforced with leather. This design proved effective in deflecting arrows and spears on the battlefield.¹⁷

This distinctive approach sharply contrasts with the heavily armored Eurasian counterparts of the time. While Old World warriors encased themselves entirely in iron suits, Aztec warriors, with their primary objective of capturing rather than killing enemy soldiers, opted for lighter and less burdensome armor. The fear of death in battle did not dominate the Aztec mindset, allowing them to tailor their protective gear to be more agile on the battlefield.

In addition to the ichcahuipilli, Aztec warriors adorned themselves with a war suit known as tlahuiztli. This garment covered not only their armor but also their arms and legs, providing an additional layer of defense against the nicks and cuts likely to be inflicted by enemy combatants.¹⁸

Sources on Aztec Weapons

1. Ross Hassig, Aztec Warfare: Imperial Expansion and Political Control (Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1988), 83.
2. Ibid
3. Hassig, Aztec Warfare, 83-85.
4. Hassig, Aztec Warfare, 81-83.
5. Jake Leigh-Haworth, “Aztec Weapons: The Horrifying Aztec Armory,” ancient-origins.net
6. Hassig, Aztec Warfare, 79-80.
7. John Whittaker, “The Aztecs and the atlatl,” mexicolore.co.uk 
8. Hassig, Aztec Warfare, 79-79.
9. Whittaker, “The Aztecs and the atlatl,” mexicolore.co.uk
10. Manuel Aguilar-Moreno, Handbook to Life in the Aztec World (New York: Infobase Publishing, 2006), 148-149.
11. Hassig, Aztec Warfare, 80-81.
12. “Ancient Aztec Weapon,” aztec-history.com
13. Marco Antonio Cervera Obregón, “The chimalli or shield: defensive weapon par excellence in the Mesoamerican world,“ mexicolore.co.uk
14. Hassig, Aztec Warfare, 85-86.
15. Ibid
16. Obregón, “The chimalli or shield: defensive weapon par excellence in the Mesoamerican world,“ mexicolore.co.uk
17. Hassig, Aztec Warfare, 88.
18. Ibid