Americas

Tlaltecuhtli was a Mesoamerican earth goddess predominantly worshiped by the Aztec people. In most religions, fertility goddesses are depicted as the culture's epitome of beauty, like Aphrodite of ancient Greece or Venus of ancient Rome. The Aztecs took a different approach, however. Tlaltecuhtli was a terrible monster that was responsible for all life, but paradoxically, could only be satiated by human sacrifice. Tlaltecuhtli and the Aztec Creation Myth The Aztec creation myth is not a pretty one. The creation myth featuring Tlaltecuhtli dates back to the Late Post-Classic period (13th-16th century AD). In Aztec mythology, four worlds had existed before ours, each wiped out by a great flood. It was believed that ours was the fifth and final world. Tlaltecuhtli