Megalithic Marvels - The Aztec Death Whistle

Starting point is 00:00:00 One of the most remarkable ancient musical instruments ever discovered is the so-called Aztec death whistle. The sound of the Aztec death whistle has perplexed scholars for years, and according to recent studies, it is so unnerving that it can literally mess up your mind. I am actually going to play the sound of this infamous resonator for you in just a few minutes. but be warned, it might be one of the creepiest sounds you have ever heard. But first, let me give you some basic Aztec history to set this up. The Aztecs, who probably originated as a nomadic tribe in northern Mexico, arrived in Mesoamerica around the beginning of the 13th century. And as the story goes, when the Aztec saw an eagle perched on a cactus on the marshy land

Starting point is 00:00:55 near the southwest border of Lake Texcoco, they took it as a sign to build their settlement there. They drained the swampy land, constructed artificial islands on which they could plant gardens and establish the foundations of their capital city, Tenochtitlan, in 1325 AD. From this magnificent capital city, the Aztecs emerged as the dominant force in central Mexico, developing an intricate, social, political, religious, and commercial organization that brought many of the region's city-states under their control by the 15th century. In the great cities of the Aztec Empire, magnificent temples, palaces, plazas, and statues embodied the civilization's unfailing devotion to the many Aztec gods. However, in November of 1519, Spanish conquistador Cortez and his army arrived in Tonichita Lahn, where Aztec emperor Montezuma and his people greeted them as honored guests according to the Aztec customs. This was partially due to the conquistadors physical resemblance to the light-skinned Quetzuadal,

Starting point is 00:02:08 whose return was prophesied in Aztec legend. Though the Aztecs had superior numbers, their weapons were inferior. and Cortez was able to immediately take Montezuma and his entourage of lords hostage, gaining control of Tonich Titlan. The Spaniards then murdered thousands of Aztec nobles during a ritual dance ceremony, and Montezuma died under uncertain circumstances while in custody. Now Quatamac, Montezuma's young nephew, took over his emperor, and the Aztecs then drove the conquistadors from the city.

Starting point is 00:02:44 However, with the help of the Aztec's native rivals, Cortez mounted an offensive against Tonich-Tatlan, finally defeating Quatomac's resistance on August 13, 1521. In all, some 240,000 people were believed to have died during the city's conquest, which effectively ended the Aztec civilization. After his victory, Cortez raised Tonich-Telan and built Mexico City on its ruin. ones, bringing an end to Mesoamerica's last great native civilization. Again, in just a few minutes, I want to play for you the horrific sound of the Aztec death whistle. But first, let me tell you a little bit about the Aztec history of sacrifice.

Starting point is 00:03:30 So when the Spanish conquistadors arrived to the Aztec capital of Tenechtatlan in 1521, they described witnessing a gruesome ceremony where Aztec priests using sharp obscenes. using sharp obsidian blades would slice open the chest of their sacrificial victims, and they would offer them with beating hearts to the gods. So the Spanish chroniclers reported that after they would take out the beating heart of these victims, they would toss the dead bodies down the steps of their temple, known as the Templo Mayor in modern-day Mexico City. Later, another conquistor named Andres de Topia described two,

Starting point is 00:04:13 rounded towers that flanked the great temple of the temple Omajor that were made entirely of human skulls. So this was not just some wall of skulls. This was two giant circular towers that filled within them were skulls from these sacrificial victims. Now many historians over the years dismissed the 16th century reports as just being wild exaggerated. The stories were believed to be nothing more propaganda meant to justify the murder and enslavement of the Aztec population and the destruction of Tonich de Lan. Over the years, archaeologists working at this Templum mayor in Mexico City have discovered proof of widespread human sacrifice among the Aztecs, and the proof was none other than the very skull towers that the conquistadors had described long before. Human sacrifice

Starting point is 00:05:08 was an integral part of the Aztec religion. The Aztec The Aztecs believed that their god of the sun needed constant nourishment in the form of human blood to keep the sun moving from east to west. Now, eyewitness accounts claim that anywhere between 20,000 to 80,000 people were sacrificed as part of the dedication ceremony at Templumayo in 1487. These Aztec victims of sacrifice were often slaves. Sometimes they were captured prisoners. However, it is said that sometimes even Aztec citizens went willingly to the sacrificial altar. For to offer your heart as a sacrifice was considered a great honor and pretty much guaranteed you a blessed afterlife. So in about one minute, I'm going to play for you the sound of the Aztec death whistle.

Starting point is 00:06:04 but first let me take one minute to describe for you the discovery of this whistle. The first ever Aztec death whistle was found in Mexico City in the late 1990s, in the grave of a 20-year-old male who was the victim of a sacrifice. Beheaded and with his arms crossed over his chest, the death whistle was found clutched within his skeletal hand. Many other death whistles have since been recovered, mostly from tombs dating back to the years 1250 through 1521 AD. Now, the whistles initially attracted the attention of the archaeologists simply because of their fascinating, unique skeletal shape. But it's only been more recently that the actual sound of these instruments has been researched. So before I share with you this groundbreaking research regarding the infamous Aztec death whistles, Let me first play for you what it sounds like.

Starting point is 00:07:05 But again, be warned, this may be one of the most horrifying sounds you have ever heard. There are so many words I could use to describe that sound like horrifying, creepy, unnerving, sickening, to say the least. Some have described that whistle as sounding like humans howling in pain. and one researcher stated that it sounds like the scream of 1,000 corpses. So why did the Aztecs use this whistle? It is believed by many researchers that the Aztecs used the sound of the death whistles to assist the sacrificial victims' souls travel to the afterlife.

Starting point is 00:07:56 The whistle is also theorized to have been used by Aztec warriors in battle to intimidate their enemies, where they would use over 1,000 whistles at a time as a form of psychological warfare. So let's end here with the psychological aspect of hearing the sound of these whistles based on this latest groundbreaking research. So when the sound from the death whistle was analyzed, it was found that the dynamics that the sound generates is so complex, it can't be simulated with computerized mathematical models.

Starting point is 00:08:32 How do such tiny artifacts make such huge, horrifying sounds? According to researchers, it's because there are different air streams generated within the structure of these instruments, which then diametrically hits against each other, which produces the very shrill and noisy sound. In a new study published in the journal known as Communications Psychology, a team of researchers from the cognitive and effective neuroscientific, Sciences Unit at the University of Zurich in Switzerland decided to explore a somewhat different but related question. They were interested in learning how the human brain reacts to otherworldly, high-pitched wind-like sounds produced by these unique whistles, information which could make

Starting point is 00:09:20 it easier to figure out how these death whistles were used. For the purposes of their research, the Swiss scientists recruited volunteers who were asked to listen to the Aztec death whistle. being blown while their brain activity was being monitored. On a side note, it's shocking to me that these were just volunteers. You would have had to have paid me at least a thousand dollars to sit and listen to this death whistle. Probably a thousand dollars per five minutes. The results of this research proved most enlightening, as the scientists discovered that these haunting instruments produce sounds that listeners experienced as unpleasant and even

Starting point is 00:10:02 frightening. The study authors explained that, quote, skull whistle sounds attract mental attention by effectively minicking the aversive and startling sounds produced by nature and technology, end quote. So as the whistle was being blown, the participants in the new study experienced a heightening activity in their brain's auditory regions. At the same time, brainwave monitoring showed that the auditory cortex was put on high alert, meaning the brain was perceiving the sounds from the whistle as threatening. The study authors further explained, quote, skull whistles thus seemed to be unique sound tools with specific psycho-effective effects on listeners and Aztec communities might have capitalized on the scary and scream-like nature of skull whistles, end quote. Well, in the end, regardless of the

Starting point is 00:10:58 intent regarding these death whistles, they would have sent a chill up and down the spine of anyone who heard them. And 500 years later, this death whistle still has the power to unnerve anyone who hears it. And that's including me. Well, I hope you enjoyed this episode. A reminder to please subscribe to this podcast from wherever you are listening or watching. And please give me a five-star review if you can. That helps me to climb the charts and reach more listeners. And last but not least, I want to personally invite you to our 2025 Peru and or Easter Island tour this May. I can promise you it will be a South American tour like no other. You have the opportunity to see the Nazca Lines, see elongated skulls, see Machu Picchu and all the top sites in and around Kusco, Peru,

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Megalithic Marvels - The Aztec Death Whistle

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