Noble Life and Everyday Life Like many civilizations, Aztec
society was hierarchical and a person’s social position, and
therefore one’s way of life, was largely determined by
birthright. Commoners worked as farmers, fishermen, or
craftsmen. Noblemen served as government officials, scribes, and
teachers. Although the class structure was reasonably rigid,
some social mobility was possible through entry into the
priesthood, achievement in warfare, or success in trade. The
Aztec ruler, however, had to have been born into the right
family. As the only figure allowed to wear the precious color
turquoise, he lived in a sumptuous palace with spectacular
gardens, a banqueting hall, a large zoo, and gold cutlery.
Attended by an abundance of bodyguards and beautiful women (who
had to approach him with downcast eyes and bare feet), the ruler
possessed an almost godlike status. The ruler at the time of the
Spanish invasion was the ninth Aztec emperor, Motecuhzoma II,
who could trace his ancestry back to the first ruler,