Lorenzo Boturini

"Alexander Humboldt was essential to the reconstruction and gathering of the pieces that once were part of the Boturini collection. This idea came about not only because he collected some of the dispersed material by himself, but also because he led the way for others, particularly Waldeck, Aubin, Nebel and Udhe, who contributed by transporting pieces of the aforementioned collection to Europe. Humboldt not only highlighted the relevance of the material but also portrayed the situation of the documents in Mexico as terrible; underestimated, badly preserved and in the hands of people willing to sell them. Indeed, the authorities from New Spain had stopped Boturini from extracting the documents but were not able to keep them together and within the borders. Hence, Humboldt wrote about Mexico as a rich source of manuscripts, artifacts, and ruins that awaited to be discovered, studied, and properly safeguarded. The paper reconstructs the history of the Boturini collection up to the current day, focusing on the documents taken to Europe by Humboldt and by other men that followed his footsteps. This chapter is illustrated with wonderful images that make patent
the beauty and relevance of the documents belonging to the collection and held in Berlin and Paris. It makes us wonder what would have happened if Humboldt had not displayed any interest in Boturini collectionand the codices. Would other travelers and collectors have esteemed them highly? Would the Mexican government have implemented policies to stop their exportation and to preserve them? Would we know their whereabouts today?" (From introduction by the volume editors).

Facsimile. Also see full text / Estdudio at https://www.academia.edu/28957804/Codice_Humboldt_Fragmento_1_Ms._amer._2_y_Codice_Azoyu_2_Reverso_Estudio_de_la_Nomina_de_Tributos_de_Tlapa_y_su_Provincia_al_Imperio_Mexicano.
Edition by Gerardo Gutiérrez/Viola König/Baltazar Brito: Códice Humboldt Fragmento 1 (Ms. amer. 2) y Códice Azoyú 2 (Reverso). Nómina de tributos de Tlapa y su provincia al Imperio Mexicano. Bilingual Edition. Buch und Faksimilie. Berlin: Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz, México: Centro de Investigaciones y Estudios Superiores en Antropología Social (CIESAS).

De regreso a España, Lorenzo Boturini vio reconocida su inocencia y obtuvo el cargo de Cronista Real en las Indias, al tiempo que logró publicar “Idea de una Nueva Historia General de la América Septentrional”. Del otro lado tuvo que enfrentarse a la oposición de los eruditos madrileños, que trataron exitosamente de estropear sus planes.

"Un acercamiento a la estrategia de búsqueda de patrocinio literario en Nueva España por el historiador italiano Lorenzo Boturini, ejemplificada por su nombramiento como Historiador de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe por el Gobernador del arzobispado de México en 1739.

A study of the the historian Lorenzo Boturini's strategy in his search for intellectual patronage in New Spain, as exemplified in his appointment as Historian of Our Lady of Guadalupe by the Governor of the Archbishopric of Mexico in 1739."

Multidisciplinary in scope, the essay includes new archival material, as well as an analysis of several images. Part of the analysis focuses on an unpublished manuscript by the Franciscan friar José Mariano Díaz de la Vega. Rich in details, the text by this Creole clerical author offers an apologetic view of the Indigenous population by collecting several accounts describing their ability to become "good Christians":  Salvadora de los Santos, Catherine Tekakwitha,  and the apparition stories of the Virgins of Guadalupe, Remedios, Ocotlán, and San Miguel del Milagro. It also describes portrait galleries of illustrious Indigenous men across Spanish America such as Juan de Espinoza y Medrano (El Lunarejo).

Lorenzo Boturini (1698-1755) was the first to support, on documentary grounds, the historical and cultural right of the Indians to take part in the process of symbolic construction of the American homeland.

Lorenzo Boturini (1698-1755) fue el primero en respaldar sobre bases documentales el derecho histórico y cultural de los indios de tomar parte en el proceso de construcción simbólica de la patria americana.