Aztec Traps

Timben

Timben

New Member
I was hoping someone could assist me in what sort of traps the Aztecs used to protect Montezuma's tomb. This is the plot for my last story in my series. Set in 1914, Mexico.

In "The Aztec Trail," retired gunfighter Sam Cassidy becomes embroiled in a dangerous expedition led by the mysterious Colonel Alvarado and a group of seasoned gunmen. With an ancient Aztec map, the team sets out in search of Montezuma's fabled treasures, traversing hazardous terrains and facing unexpected dangers. As tensions escalate and loyalties waver, Cassidy must navigate carefully to distinguish allies from adversaries. Long-hidden secrets emerge, and the fundamental nature of honor is subjected to its greatest test. Will the allure of immense wealth unite this unlikely group, or will the promise of gold reveal their deepest ambitions and darkest motives?
 
Timben said:
I was hoping someone could assist me in what sort of traps the Aztecs used to protect Montezuma's tomb. This is the plot for my last story in my series. Set in 1914, Mexico.
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Is there any evidence that such traps really existed?
 
*reads the Quora page; raises eyebrow*

Oh, boy. I love it how everyone -- except for the bot -- says that ancient temples had no traps. *giggle* I guess the bot thinks that the "Indiana Jones" and "Conan the Barbarian" stories are true-to-life? ;)
 
Timben said:
Could you give some examples, please, sir? Thank you.
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You mean mystical elements in Indiana Jones? Well, for one example, the Ark of the Covenant proves to be pretty mystical when the Nazis open it up at the ending. There's also ghosts, potions that make you evil, and time travel throughout the series.
 
Anyway, as far as your story is concerned...

I looked up how the Aztecs would bury their kings, and I found this article:

Royal Aztec crypt wows archaeologists
Mexican archaeologists using ground-penetrating radar have detected underground chambers they believe contain the remains of Emperor Ahuizotl, who ruled the Aztecs when Columbus landed in the New World. It would be the first tomb of an Aztec ruler ever found.

The find could provide an extraordinary window into Aztec civilization at its apogee. Ahuizotl (ah-WEE-zoh-tuhl), an empire-builder who extended the Aztecs’ reach as far as Guatemala, was the last emperor to complete his rule before the Spanish Conquest.

Accounts written by Spanish priests suggest the area was used by the Aztecs to cremate and bury their rulers. But no tomb of an Aztec ruler has ever been found, in part because the Spanish conquerors built their own city atop the Aztec’s ceremonial center, leaving behind colonial structures too historically valuable to remove for excavations.
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The article mentions them cremating their kings and then burying them with "rich offerings" like vases and ornaments. It doesn't mention booby traps, but it does mention the tomb underlying a statue of an earth goddess with large claws. If you're willing to put anything mystical in your story, maybe a similar statue guards Montezuma's tomb that comes to life to defend it from robbers?
 
Hmm. If you don't care that much about historical accuracy (like the Indiana Jones movies), you could have almost anything: tripwires that trigger a crossbow firing darts at your hero, shifting floors that tip your hero into a pit of spikes, rolling boulders -- even statues or dead bodies coming back to life.

Realistically, of course, such things didn't exist (although mazes and such did, of course; you could simply have a maze that your hero wanders around in, gets completely lost, and nearly dies of starvation ... but that wouldn't be very exciting to read).
 
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