Codex Mendoza
Sometimes the record of a culture is made by its conqueror. This manuscript was commissioned by Antonio de Mendoza, first Viceroy of Mexico 1535-1550, for presentation to the Emperor Charles V of Spain. It contains, firstly, a copy of a lost chronicle of the Aztec lords of Tenochtitlan; secondly, a copy of the ancient Tribute Roll, listing 400 towns paying annual dues to the last Aztec Emperor, Moctezuma II; and thirdly, an account of Aztec life ‘from year to year’. The pictographs, by an Aztec artist, were annotated in Spanish by a Nahuatl-speaking Spanish priest who questioned native speakers as to their meaning. Shown here is a depiction of an Aztec wedding.
Excerpt from the Codex Mendox (Nahuatl & English), read by Ana Lopez Garcia
Excerpt from the Codex Mendox (in Spanish), read by Ana Lopez Garcia
Excerpt from the Codex Mendox (in English), read by Ana Lopez Garcia
This Treasure isn’t currently on display in the Weston Library.