Decoding the Codex Borgia
eBook - PDF

Decoding the Codex Borgia

Visual Symbols of Time and Space in Ancient Mexico

  1. 450 pages
  2. English
  3. PDF
  4. Available on iOS & Android
eBook - PDF

Decoding the Codex Borgia

Visual Symbols of Time and Space in Ancient Mexico

About this book

Exploring the meanings in the intricate symbolism of a rare Precolumbian manuscript

 

This book explores the rich symbolism of the Codex Borgia, a masterpiece of Precolumbian art dating to the fifteenth century, one of the few surviving books from before the Spanish conquest of Mexico. Susan Milbrath uses information from the fields of art history, anthropology, ethnohistory, natural history, and cultural astronomy to show how the manuscript’s intricate and colorful imagery conveys complex ideas related to Mesoamerican myths and religion.

Milbrath sets the work in historical context, establishing its provenance in the Puebla-Tlaxcala Valley of Central Mexico and pinpointing the date it was painted based on rain almanacs found in its pages. She offers a new interpretation of a unique narrative section that has long intrigued scholars, arguing that the ceremonial variations depicted in it are related to the solar cycle. Overall, this book opens new doors in the study of the Codex Borgia by identifying seasonal imagery in the narrative and associated astronomical events, especially those that involve the three brightest objects in the sky: the sun, the moon, and Venus. Decoding the Codex Borgia is an illuminating journey into the culture and cosmology of the Aztecs and their neighboring communities.

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Yes, you can access Decoding the Codex Borgia by Susan Milbrath in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in Social Sciences & History of Art. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Half Title
  3. Title
  4. Copyright
  5. Dedication
  6. Contents
  7. List of Figures
  8. List of Color Plates
  9. List of Sky Maps
  10. List of Synopsis Plates
  11. List of Tables
  12. Preface
  13. Acknowledgments
  14. 1. Setting the Stage for Study of the Codex Borgia
  15. 2. Scholarly Research on the Unique Narrative on Borgia 29–46
  16. 3. Seasonality in the Central Mexican Festivals and the Borgia Narrative
  17. 4. Calendar Round Almanacs in the Codex Borgia
  18. 5. Deities of the Sun and Moon in Borgia Group Codices
  19. 6. Lunar Phases and Eclipses in the Borgia Group Codices
  20. 7. Celestial Cycles in the Codex Borgia Narrative
  21. 8. How Can the Codex Borgia Be Decoded?
  22. Appendix A. Aztec Gods Associated with the Twenty Trecena Periods and Their Associated Fates
  23. Glossary
  24. Notes
  25. Bibliography
  26. Index
  27. About the Author