First World War as Sacrificial Ritual Aztec Ritual Sacrifice Removing the heart of a captured warrior: feeding the Sun God Western Ritual Sacrifice: Battle of the Somme British soldiers about to run into machine gun fire: Feeding Great Britain Aztec Sacrifice. Post-Conquest Nahua Painting, c. 1560. (Priests hold excavated heart to sun atop teocalli) c. 1650 ref 1500 Aztecs Spanish Conquest. Carnage: British soldiers go over the top towards the waiting machine guns.