Existing comment:
Codex Mendoza, mid-1500s
Courtesy of Bodleian Library, Oxford University
Aztec rulers made people pay taxes. This image shows two bundles of green quetzal tail feathers, ceremonial clothing and shields made from feathers, and beads. It made up part of the community’s payment. In the early 1500s, one community gathered 10,000 feathers each year.
Codex Mendoza, mid-1500s |