Temple To God Of Skin Sacrifices Discovered

Stone idol found in Mexico at a site built by the Popolocas

Archaeologists in Mexico say they have found the first temple dedicated to a deity called the 'flayed lord', an important god in the Aztec Empire whose worshippers were said to wear the skin of sacrificial victims.

Artefacts related to the god were found in the central state of Puebla, at a site built by the Popoloca people, Mexico's National Institute of Anthropology and History said in a statement. The Popolocas built in the area over several centuries, beginning around A.D. 900, and were assimilated into the sprawling Aztec kingdom.

At the temple, which the institute said was probably built between A.D. 1000 and 1260, the archaeologists found artefacts related to the god, Xipe Tfitec, including two stone skulls and a stone torso that had an extra hand hanging off its left arm. Scientists said the extra hand suggested the god was wearing the remains of a sacrificial victim.

Evidence of rituals