---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There were car gods there: a powerful…"
description: "\"“There were car gods there: a powerful, serious-faced contingent, with blood on their black gloves and on their chrome teeth: recipients of human sacri..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b24/neil-gaiman-29_quote_there-were-car-gods-there-a-powerful-ser_1739880.jpg"
---

#  There were car gods there: a powerful, serious-faced…

![“There were car gods there: a powerful, serious-faced contingent, with blood on their black gloves and on their chrome teeth: recipients of human sacrifice on a scale undreamed-of since the Aztecs.” quote by Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b24/neil-gaiman-29_quote_there-were-car-gods-there-a-powerful-ser_1739880.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b24/neil-gaiman-29_quote_there-were-car-gods-there-a-powerful-ser_1739880.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b24/neil-gaiman-29_quote_there-were-car-gods-there-a-powerful-ser_1739880.jpg)

> ““There were car gods there: a powerful, serious-faced contingent, with blood on their black gloves and on their chrome teeth: recipients of human sacrifice on a scale undreamed-of since the Aztecs.””

[Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

A vivid, mythic description of car culture as a modern sacrificial rite.

**In simple terms:** Cars portrayed as fierce deities.

Key Takeaway

Question modern rituals.

Themes

myth technology ritual

Mood

dark poetic

Type

inspirational philosophical

When to use this quote

- advertising
- automotive design
- urban legend

Key Concepts

mythology cultural critique

Questions to Reflect On

- What does this metaphor reveal about consumerism?
- How do we sacrifice for technology?

A Different Perspective

May romanticize danger.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Aztecs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aztecs/)

## Related quotes

> [“Aztlán (“The Place of the Reeds”) was the traditional home of the Aztecs, a possibly mythical motherland from which the tribe ventured forth on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luis-alberto-urrea/aztl-n-the-place-of-the-reeds-was-the-traditional-home-of-the-aztecs/)

[Luis Alberto Urrea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luis-alberto-urrea/)

> [“The magnitude of these shattering changes can perhaps be grasped by imagining that the invasion had been in the reverse direction and that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoffrey-blainey/the-magnitude-of-these-shattering-changes-can-perhaps-be-grasped-by/)

[Geoffrey Blainey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoffrey-blainey/)

> [The Aztecs believe they started up in what's now New Mexico, and wandered for 10,000 years before they got down into where they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-pournelle/the-aztecs-believe-they-started-up-in-what-s-now-new-mexico-and/)

[Jerry Pournelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-pournelle/)

> [“Who could truly set His shield to rest? His throne? His mighty spear? Think on that. Remember it well, O princes. Who could lay…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bowles/who-could-truly-set-his-shield-to-rest-his-throne-his-mighty-spear/)

[David Bowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bowles/)

> [“In the place of the bells, where battle is waged, The reeds all lie broken in Chalco today. Dust yellows the air, our houses…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bowles/in-the-place-of-the-bells-where-battle-is-waged-the-reeds-all-lie/)

[David Bowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bowles/)

> [“The Mexicans have a fervent appreciation of poetry and make regular use of it. It occupies a high and ancient seat in the Mexican…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-ronstadt/the-mexicans-have-a-fervent-appreciation-of-poetry-and-make-regular/)

[Linda Ronstadt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-ronstadt/)

> [“Now the moon of the Aztecs is at the zenith, and all the world lies still. Full and white, the white of bones, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornell-woolrich/now-the-moon-of-the-aztecs-is-at-the-zenith-and-all-the-world-lies/)

[Cornell Woolrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornell-woolrich/)

> [“He probably didn’t know Aztecs from Mayans. None of the gods, none of the mythology, none of the names she’d learned since childhood. There…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/silvia-moreno-garcia/he-probably-didn-t-know-aztecs-from-mayans-none-of-the-gods-none-of/)

[Silvia Moreno-Garcia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/silvia-moreno-garcia/)

> [“I still couldn’t banish the image of the Quetzal Flower. In my mind, it merged with that of Priestess Eleuia: everything a man could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aliette-de-bodard/i-still-couldn-t-banish-the-image-of-the-quetzal-flower-in-my-mind-it/)

Aliette de Bodard

> [“This fifth and final sun will die, Like every sun before— But for a moment we laughed in its light, Like wind-blown petals Sparkling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bowles/this-fifth-and-final-sun-will-die-like-every-sun-before-but-for-a/)

[David Bowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bowles/)

> [The Mexicans descend from the Aztecs; the Peruvians descend from the Incas; the Argentineans descend from the boats.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-fuentes/the-mexicans-descend-from-the-aztecs-the-peruvians-descend-from-the/)

[Carlos Fuentes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-fuentes/)

> [“If the Aztecs saw Giza, they would have called Menkaure - the Pyramid of the Moon.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibrahim-ibrahim/if-the-aztecs-saw-giza-they-would-have-called-menkaure-the-pyramid-of/)

[Ibrahim Ibrahim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibrahim-ibrahim/)

> [That was when the Spanish came in and conquered the Aztecs. I thought that was a clever thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/les-baxter/that-was-when-the-spanish-came-in-and-conquered-the-aztecs-i-thought/)

[Les Baxter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/les-baxter/)

> [It's a great historical joke that when the Spanish met the Aztecs, it was a blind date made in serve-you-right heaven. At the time,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-a-gill/it-s-a-great-historical-joke-that-when-the-spanish-met-the-aztecs-it/)

[A. A. Gill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-a-gill/)

> [“Another of the great civilizations, the Aztecs, raised a breed of hairless chihuahuas especially for eating. When the Conquistadors arrived and found dog on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/medlar-lucan/another-of-the-great-civilizations-the-aztecs-raised-a-breed-of/)

Medlar Lucan

## More by Neil Gaiman

> [“People talk about books that write themselves, and it's a lie. Books don't write themselves. It takes thought and research and a backache and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/people-talk-about-books-that-write-themselves-and-it-s-a-lie-books/)

[Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/)

> [“Like all sentient beings, Fat Charlie had a weirdness quotient. For some days the needle had been over in the red, occasionally banging jerkily…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/like-all-sentient-beings-fat-charlie-had-a-weirdness-quotient-for/)

[Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/)

> [“Shadow crawled across the floor to the yellow foam-rubber pad and climbed onto it, pulling the thin blanket over himself, and closed his eyes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/shadow-crawled-across-the-floor-to-the-yellow-foam-rubber-pad-and/)

[Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/)

> [ “\[T\]hey could not help being amused every time another little human believed itself the center of its world, as each of us does.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/t-hey-could-not-help-being-amused-every-time-another-little-human/)

[Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/)

> [So many things to see, people to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/so-many-things-to-see-people-to-do/)

[Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/)

> [“Three may keep a secret, if two of them are dead.’ – Ben Franklin,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/three-may-keep-a-secret-if-two-of-them-are-dead-ben-franklin/)

[Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/)

> [You need more than a beginning if you're going to start a book. If all you have is a beginning, then once you've written…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/you-need-more-than-a-beginning-if-you-re-going-to-start-a-book-if-all/)

[Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/)

> [You can tell the date of an old science fiction novel by every word on the page. Nothing dates harder and faster and more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/you-can-tell-the-date-of-an-old-science-fiction-novel-by-every-word/)

[Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/)

> [“The quickest way is sometimes the longest.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/the-quickest-way-is-sometimes-the-longest/)

[Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/)

> [“They were spells, spelled with words to make worlds, waiting for me, in the pages of books.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/they-were-spells-spelled-with-words-to-make-worlds-waiting-for-me-in/)

[Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/)

> [Finish what you're writing. Whatever you have to do to finish it, finish it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/finish-what-you-re-writing-whatever-you-have-to-do-to-finish-it/)

[Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/)

> [What do stars do? They shine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/what-do-stars-do-they-shine/)

[Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/)

> [“What," asked Mr Croup, "do you want?" "What," asked the Marquis de Carabas, a little more rhetorically, "does anyone want?" "Dead things," suggested Mr…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/what-asked-mr-croup-do-you-want-what-asked-the-marquis-de-carabas-a/)

[Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/)

> [You get on with your own life. Lettie gave it to you. You just have to grow up and try and be worth it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/you-get-on-with-your-own-life-lettie-gave-it-to-you-you-just-have-to/)

[Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/)

> [“Eyes will not see you. Minds will not hold you. Where you are is nothing and nobody”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/eyes-will-not-see-you-minds-will-not-hold-you-where-you-are-is/)

[neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/)

[Explore all 2,526 Neil Gaiman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/)

## More Aztecs quotes

> [“Aztlán (“The Place of the Reeds”) was the traditional home of the Aztecs, a possibly mythical motherland from which the tribe ventured forth on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luis-alberto-urrea/aztl-n-the-place-of-the-reeds-was-the-traditional-home-of-the-aztecs/)

[Luis Alberto Urrea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luis-alberto-urrea/)

> [It's a great historical joke that when the Spanish met the Aztecs, it was a blind date made in serve-you-right heaven. At the time,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-a-gill/it-s-a-great-historical-joke-that-when-the-spanish-met-the-aztecs-it/)

[A. A. Gill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-a-gill/)

> [That was when the Spanish came in and conquered the Aztecs. I thought that was a clever thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/les-baxter/that-was-when-the-spanish-came-in-and-conquered-the-aztecs-i-thought/)

[Les Baxter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/les-baxter/)

> [“If the Aztecs saw Giza, they would have called Menkaure - the Pyramid of the Moon.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibrahim-ibrahim/if-the-aztecs-saw-giza-they-would-have-called-menkaure-the-pyramid-of/)

[Ibrahim Ibrahim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibrahim-ibrahim/)

> [The Mexicans descend from the Aztecs; the Peruvians descend from the Incas; the Argentineans descend from the boats.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-fuentes/the-mexicans-descend-from-the-aztecs-the-peruvians-descend-from-the/)

[Carlos Fuentes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-fuentes/)

> [“This fifth and final sun will die, Like every sun before— But for a moment we laughed in its light, Like wind-blown petals Sparkling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bowles/this-fifth-and-final-sun-will-die-like-every-sun-before-but-for-a/)

[David Bowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bowles/)

> [“I still couldn’t banish the image of the Quetzal Flower. In my mind, it merged with that of Priestess Eleuia: everything a man could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aliette-de-bodard/i-still-couldn-t-banish-the-image-of-the-quetzal-flower-in-my-mind-it/)

Aliette de Bodard

> [“He probably didn’t know Aztecs from Mayans. None of the gods, none of the mythology, none of the names she’d learned since childhood. There…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/silvia-moreno-garcia/he-probably-didn-t-know-aztecs-from-mayans-none-of-the-gods-none-of/)

[Silvia Moreno-Garcia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/silvia-moreno-garcia/)

> [“Now the moon of the Aztecs is at the zenith, and all the world lies still. Full and white, the white of bones, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornell-woolrich/now-the-moon-of-the-aztecs-is-at-the-zenith-and-all-the-world-lies/)

[Cornell Woolrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornell-woolrich/)

> [“The Mexicans have a fervent appreciation of poetry and make regular use of it. It occupies a high and ancient seat in the Mexican…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-ronstadt/the-mexicans-have-a-fervent-appreciation-of-poetry-and-make-regular/)

[Linda Ronstadt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-ronstadt/)

> [“In the place of the bells, where battle is waged, The reeds all lie broken in Chalco today. Dust yellows the air, our houses…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bowles/in-the-place-of-the-bells-where-battle-is-waged-the-reeds-all-lie/)

[David Bowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bowles/)

> [“Who could truly set His shield to rest? His throne? His mighty spear? Think on that. Remember it well, O princes. Who could lay…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bowles/who-could-truly-set-his-shield-to-rest-his-throne-his-mighty-spear/)

[David Bowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bowles/)

> [The Aztecs believe they started up in what's now New Mexico, and wandered for 10,000 years before they got down into where they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-pournelle/the-aztecs-believe-they-started-up-in-what-s-now-new-mexico-and/)

[Jerry Pournelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-pournelle/)

> [“The magnitude of these shattering changes can perhaps be grasped by imagining that the invasion had been in the reverse direction and that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoffrey-blainey/the-magnitude-of-these-shattering-changes-can-perhaps-be-grasped-by/)

[Geoffrey Blainey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoffrey-blainey/)

> [“Another of the great civilizations, the Aztecs, raised a breed of hairless chihuahuas especially for eating. When the Conquistadors arrived and found dog on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/medlar-lucan/another-of-the-great-civilizations-the-aztecs-raised-a-breed-of/)

Medlar Lucan

[Browse all 18 Aztecs quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aztecs/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“There were car gods there: a powerful, serious-faced contingent, with blood on their black gloves and on their chrome teeth: recipients of human sacrifice on a scale undreamed-of since the Aztecs.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Neil Gaiman"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/there-were-car-gods-there-a-powerful-serious-faced-contingent-with/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Aztecs"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/there-were-car-gods-there-a-powerful-serious-faced-contingent-with/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b24/neil-gaiman-29_quote_there-were-car-gods-there-a-powerful-ser_1739880.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b24/neil-gaiman-29_quote_there-were-car-gods-there-a-powerful-ser_1739880.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b24/neil-gaiman-29_quote_there-were-car-gods-there-a-powerful-ser_1739880.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“There were car gods there: a powerful, serious-faced contingent, with blood on their black gloves and on…” — Neil Gaiman",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Neil Gaiman",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“There were car gods there: a...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/there-were-car-gods-there-a-powerful-serious-faced-contingent-with/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/there-were-car-gods-there-a-powerful-serious-faced-contingent-with/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
