This landmark BBC Arts documentary series, Civilisations: Rise and Fall, brings four ancient civilisations back to life. From Ancient Rome to Cleopatra’s Egypt, via the samurai of Japan and the lost world of the Aztecs, audiences will discover rare and beautiful art and artefacts from each culture.
Elizabeth Baquedano (Honorary Associate Professor, UCL Institute of Archaeology) was invited to contribute to the programme on the Aztecs, being broadcast in the UK on Monday 8 December 2025 and already available on BBCiPlayer.
At its height, the Aztec civilisation is a vast and well-organised society, ruled by Emperor Moctezuma II and centred on the spectacular island city of Tenochtitlan, which contains around 100,000 people.
But in 1519, the arrival of a band of Spanish conquistadors, led by Hernan Cortes, becomes one of the most fateful moments in world history and exposes the fault lines within the Aztec world.
Programme contributors were asked to highlight a particularly compelling artefact which was discussed in the programme. Elizabeth chose the double headed serpent - a pectoral covered with turquoise tesserae in the hues of blue that the ancient Mexicans so valued.
According to Elizabeth:
In Nahuatl, the Aztec language, coatl means both snake and twin. Snakes connoted various values, especially fertility and danger. The Aztecs observed nature keenly, and anything that seemed unusual, they reproduced faithfully.
Watch the Episode on The Aztecs
Watch on BBC iPlayerImages
Top: BBC Studios/Ikram Ahmed
Middle & Bottom: BBC/BBC Studios
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