Was chocolate like money for the Aztecs?
Yes! For the Aztec cacao beans were prized trade items. Though they weren't as valuable as gold, textiles or axes, cacao was used for trade most certainly!
What was the red pigment made out of on the Man Carrying Cacao pod Aztec sculpture?
This pigment on this particular sculpture has not been scientifically analyzed so we aren't certain, but some of the reds that the Aztecs may have used include cinnabar, iron oxides, and cochineal.
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Can you tell me more about this?
In this sculpture, a man is shown carrying a cacao pod, the beans from which would have been used to create chocolate. Unlike a great deal of Aztec sculpture that has ritual connotations, this sculpture is believed to be purely secular. This is also a great example of naturalism in Aztec sculpture.