I'm trying to get a picture of how it was truly like. In modern times, sacrifice in the Mayan world is usually depicted as something beyond terrifying (piles of bodies, hearts ripped out of the chest, etc).

What I want to know though, is how was it truly like? (to the best of our knowledge). Would there actually be long lines of people waiting to be sacrificed? How often would these sacrifices take place (like, would the average Mayan be aware of them?)? How does the bloodiness of these sacrifices compare to those of other Mesoamerican civilizations? (I'm under the impression that the Aztec sacrifices were the bloodiest) What prisoners of war the most common type of people sacrificed?

Thanks in advance to anybody who can answer this! My memory of the Mayans is fuzzy, and it'd be totally awesome to get some clarification. :)