The Florentine Codex, Book Twelve: The Conquest of Mexico

Two of the worlds leading scholars of the Aztec language and culture have translated Sahagns monumental and encyclopedic study of native life in Mexico at the time of the Spanish Conquest. This immense undertaking is the first complete translation into any language of Sahagns Nahuatl text, and represents one of the most distinguished contributions in the fields of anthropology, ethnography, and linguistics. Written between 1540 and 1585, the Florentine Codex (so named because the manuscript has been part of the Laurentian Librarys collections since at least 1791) is the most authoritative statement we have of the Aztecs lifeways and traditionsa rich and intimate yet panoramic view of a doomed people. The Florentine Codex is divided by subject area into twelve books and includes over 2,000 illustrations drawn by Nahua artists in the sixteenth century. Book Twelve contains a meticulous retelling of the Spanish Conquest of Mexico, from the days leading up to the first arrival of Cortes to when the Tlatilulcans, the Tenochtitlans, and their rulers ultimately submitted to the Spaniards.