The Cuauhcalli or House of Eagles, a building in the Neo-Toltec style, lies north of the Templo Mayor in the main ceremonial centre of Tenochtitlan, and was used for ceremonies of prayer, spiritual communing, penance and self-sacrifice.

Platform bases with eagle sculptures on the moldings gave access to rooms surrounding two inner patios. A low polychrome bench running along the wall of one of the patios was sculptured in low relief with a procession of warriors marching towards a zacatapayolli – the ball of straw into which the instruments of self-sacrifice were inserted. The motif and style of this procession are both Toltec.

The sculpture of an Eagle Man above is one of two monumental ceramic figures discovered in the Cuauhcalli. The sculptures were initially thought to represent Eagle Warriors, members of one of the two highest-ranking Aztec military orders, but their significance is much greater. Recent studies of the symbolism and uses of the House of Eagles indicate that these ‘eagle men’ probably represent the sun at dawn. The fired-clay sculpture shown stands some 170 cm tall, and consists of four jointed sections. It bears traces of stucco and white paint that depicted the bird feathers on the warrior’s clothing.