Conquest, Memory, and Material Culture in New Spain of the 16th and 17th Centuries

Abstract

During the course of the centuries, memories of the Conquest have been shaped by various political projects, starting with those of the persons responsible for establishing a new colonial society. This article explores how inhabitants of New Spain mediated through texts, images and artifacts their own memories of the events between 1519-21 to legitimize their demands for rewards or a privileged social status. It argues that distributive struggles shaped the practices of memorialization with which the past was brought into the present and in the service of the future, as well as the interactions between a textual and material world that shaped the memories of the Conquest.

Keywords

• conquista
• practices of memorialization
• distributive struggle
• new spain