In 2017, the authors supervised the recovery of a pre-Hispanic stone sculpture near the community of La Victoria, in the Sierra de los Tuxtlas, southern Veracruz, Mexico. The fortuitous discovery of this monument afforded a rare research opportunity to conduct a controlled, systematic archaeological investigation of a known, but poorly documented, Early Classic–period (a.d. 300–450) sculptural tradition. Moreover, this archaeological salvage project facilitated a crucial dialogue with local stakeholders regarding the recovery and final disposition of the monument. This collaborative effort enabled researchers to wed governmental oversight and academic interests with the concerns of local stakeholders, thereby furthering the investigation, conservation, and public appreciation of Classic-period archaeology along Mexico's southern Gulf Lowlands.

In the present discussion, I will focus on the creation of baby warriors in Mesoamerica in a twofold manner: as human beings and as blade stones. The emphasis will be on central Mexico, complemented with essential data from other parts of Postclassic Mesoamerica. By juxtaposing information from historical sources in a novel way, this investigation seeks to offer new insights that should reinforce the idea that warriors captured on the battlefield were considered to be children. Although this idea has been suggested before, this article aims to contribute new historical evidence that not only confirms this notion but also widens our understanding of the creation of nonbiological offspring. Making kin out of Others aims to satisfy a cosmological need to incorporate vital energy and elements for individual and collective personhood from outside of the community. The second idea of this investigation focuses on a related productive variant of this gestational dynamic, suggesting that by stone flaking and chipping, children (of stone) were fabricated. Some of them were indeed “child blade stones” who personified warriors and fed themselves with sacrificial victims, securing sustenance for the hungry gods. I argue that the birth of these warriors should be integrated into a major mythological theme—namely, the Child Hero and the Old Adoptive Mother.