Antonio de Mendoza (1492–1552).
Relacion de las ceremonias… de los Indios de la provencia de Mechoacán [Account of the ceremonies… of the Indians of the province of Michoacan].
Manuscript, eighteenth century.
Jay I. Kislak Collection, Rare Book and Special Collections Division, Library of Congress (35)
Survey of New Spain
This manuscript was copied in the eighteenth century from a sixteenth-century original in the library at the El Escorial outside Madrid, which holds the library of King Phillip II of Spain (1527–1598), who reigned 1556–1598. The text contains numerous watercolors depicting village life, religious ceremonies, and warfare among the Indians. Although the images reflect Spanish impressions of the Indians, the work seems to have been based in part on information from native informants.