Exploring American Histories: Printed Page 21

Document 1.3

Aztec Smallpox Victim, 1540

Between 1519 and 1521, the Spanish explorer Hernán Cortés led a war of conquest against the Aztecs. His eventual victory was greatly aided by advanced military technology, native allies, and the unintended introduction of European diseases into the Aztec population. Spanish contact spread smallpox to the region, killing thousands and weakening a once-powerful Aztec military. The image below, from a treatise written by a Franciscan missionary, shows the different stages suffered by a smallpox victim.

Explore

image
The Granger Collection, New York

Interpret the Evidence

  • Question

    What does this image tell us about the role of the Aztec healer, standing before one of the victims, in the face of a smallpox epidemic?

  • Question

    What does this group of five panels imply about the way that smallpox victims experienced the disease?

Put It in Context

Question

What message do you think Bernardino de Sahagun, the Franciscan missionary, meant to convey in using this image in his history of New Spain?