The Clavijero's "History" engravings: pictographic manuscripts, between rerun, invention and oversights

Abstract

In his "Ancient History of Mexico" published in Italy in 1780, the Jesuit Clavijero, claims the use of Mexican pictographic manuscripts. Some plates copy out documents supposedly pictographic such as calendar wheels (century, year, Mexica months). Most of them retake codex previously edited (mainly by S. Purchas, G. Careri and Lorenzana). This is easily spotted in the Mexica defensive weapons' representation. He also manages to concetrate a form of knowledge and to present new engravings (digital glyphs, Aztec kings' names, cities' names) for educational purposes. Some glyphs are sometimes modified by Clavijero for further clarity. The borrowings from engravings by Careri, less well known, (showing Mexica costumes, weapons and regalia) are just as interesting for the creative work apparent in the engravings. Finally, another more or less scientific engravings permit to identify several borrowings to a certain extent true (the making of bread) but also mistaken (temazcal). The Great Temple of Mexico's representation that rejects Lorenzana's fanciful version, proposes another one just as erroneous like all the other representations showing religious subjects (temples, human sacrifices) because they retake inaccurate elements of 16th century engravings (Valades) or belonging to the 18th century (Lorenzana).