Descendants of Aztec pictography : the cultural encyclopedias of sixteenth-century Mexico / Elizabeth Hill Boone.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Boone, Elizabeth Hill, author.

Series:

Joe R. and Teresa Lozano Long series in Latin American and Latino art and culture

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Aztecs--Mexico--16th century--Encyclopedias--History and criticism.

Aztecs.

Nahuatl language--Writing.

History.

Picture-writing.

Mexico.

Aztecs--Mexico--16th century--Encyclopedias--Authorship.

Authorship.

Aztecs--Mexico--16th century--Encyclopedias--Pictorial works.

Picture-writing--Mexico--16th century.

Nahuatl language--Writing--History.

Nahuatl language.

Genre:

Encyclopedias.

Pictorial works.

Criticism, interpretation, etc.

History.

Illustrated works.

Physical Description:

xiv, 244 pages : color illustrations ; 29 cm.

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

Austin : University of Texas Press, 2020.

Summary:

"In the aftermath of the Spanish conquest of Mexico, the Franciscan monk Andrés de Olmos was tasked with gathering and compiling knowledge of Aztec history, religious beliefs, and culture into massive pictorial encyclopedias. Combining European traditions of gathering and organizing with indigenous knowledge, these books' primary purpose was evangelical. Only nine of these original encyclopedias, written between 1533 and 1581 in the early years following Spanish conquest, still survive: the Codices Borbonicus, Mendoza, Telleriano-Remensis, Río, Magliabechiano, Tudelo, and Florentine (as well as two personal histories of the conquest written by Spaniards). These books covered information on Aztec society, cosmology and calendars, economics, and imperial history for the use of Spanish authorities as they navigated the coalescence of their control of the New World. Although altered and influenced by Spanish bookmaking traditions, these texts are sources of important information about Aztec society before the conquest. Boone sees this work as a culmination of years of research to understand this period and the process of creating these types of books. She studies how information was gathered and influenced by European and indigenous traditions with peoples from both groups collaborating on their authorship, then moves to understanding and comparing the overall intents of individual books in this tradition, and finally looks at how the images themselves display and preserve, or not, artistic traditions from both sides"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Machine generated contents note: ch. 1 Paintings From The Past

ch. 2 Graphic Complexity In New Spain

ch. 3 The Encyclopedic Tradition In Europe

ch. 4 The Evangelical Project And Mendicant Investigators

ch. 5 Early Compilations: Codices Borbonicus And Mendoza

ch. 6 The Mid-Century Encyclopedias: Codices Telleriano-Remensis And Rios And The Magliabechiano Group

ch. 7 Duran And Sahagun: Cumulative Expositions Of The Late Sixteenth Century

ch. 8 Memories In Figures.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9781477321676

1477321675

OCLC:

1142954131