A Reevaluation of the Authenticity of Fray Diego de Landa'sRelación de las cosas de Yucatán

Abstract

This article analyzes the appearance and content of the surviving archival manuscript of the Relación de las cosas de Yucatán, ascribed to Fray Diego de Landa (1524-79), the most prominent of the first generation of Franciscan friars in the Spanish colony of Yucatán. This analysis is placed in the context of the way in which published editions of the work have been treated and used since the manuscript's rediscovery in the 1860s. The authors argue that such treatment has been based on a misconception of the nature of the Relación, suggesting that this important manuscript be viewed very differently by scholars.

Mesoamerican Flat Curved Sticks: Innovative “Toltec” Short Sword, Fending Stick, or Other Purpose?

“…Given the South American example, a specific passage in Diego de Landa's account of life among the Yucatec Maya is intriguing. I grant the potentially problematic nature of his narrative (e.g., Restall and Chuchiak 2002), and also that aspects of life had doubtless been altered by the time that he made his observations. Still, this passage is worth considering.…”

Mending the past: Ix Chel and the invention of a modern pop goddess

“…Written in part in the 1560s while he awaited trial for an overly aggressive campaign of extirpation in Yucatan, the Relación is a curious assemblage of recollections and observations meant to vindicate Landa in the eyes of the church. Although of dubious authorship, the Relación has come to be used as a key ethnohistorical source on early contact Maya culture and spurred many scholars to examine Colonial documents for evidence of pre-contact Maya culture (Restall & Chuchiak 2002). Landa described many Maya gods and goddesses; relevant to this study he says:…”

“…None of the Spanish accounts mentioned above was particularly accessible to the general intellectual community until after the late nineteenth century when Bishop Diego de Landa's Relación de las cosas de Yucatán was published for the first time (Restall & Chuchiak 2002). Written in part in the 1560s while he awaited trial for an overly aggressive campaign of extirpation in Yucatan, the Relación is a curious assemblage of recollections and observations meant to vindicate Landa in the eyes of the church.…”

The Discovery of a Beehive and the Identification of Apiaries Among the Ancient Maya

“…One of the most salient sources on Yucatecan culture was provided by Fray Diego de Landa, the second bishop of Yucatan in the 1570s, in his invaluable work entitled Relación de las cosas de Yucatán (Chuchiak 2005; Tozzer 1941; see also Restall and Chuchiak 2002). In this work, he provides an overview of the environment, flora and fauna of these foreign lands, and also provides an overview of Yucatec Maya calendrical rites and the associated calendar.…”