The Aztec Double-Headed Serpent DVD

The turquoise mosaic of a double-headed serpent is one of the most alluring objects in the British Museum's Mexican Gallery. Made over 500 years ago, this icon of Aztec art is admired for its symmetry, beauty and colour. But it is also chilling anddisquietening: those perfect curves end in teeth- and those teeth absolutely mean death. This absorbing film examines the serpent in detail: the materials, the tools and techniques used to craft it; its original purpose and symbolism; its aestheticvalue in the world today. It looks, too, at the culture that created this materpiece - a culture stretching back thousands of years which was to face destruction at the hands of the Spanish conquistadors.