ETHNOGRAPHY

Aztec tribute list and key

Aztec tribute list and key. Statement of tribute payable by 10 cities, one sheet. Characters and animals in black and red. When the Spanish conquerors defeated the Aztec Empire under its ruler King Montezuma, they continued to exact tribute from the conquered settlements just as the Aztecs had done. This tribute list on maguey paper is a legal document in a case brought by ten native settlements in 1555-1556 to the Ruling Spanish Audiencia against a corrupt official who was demanding excessive tribute. The names of the settlements are at the top of the columns with the amounts of tribute listed underneath. Aztec tribute list donated by Mr Robert McCalmont in 1833

BELUM.C1911.1090

National Museums NI