Codices

Examples of Codices in the following topics:

• Codices of the Aztecs

  • Aztec codices, or pictorial manuscripts, are among the best primary sources of information on Aztec culture.
  • The Aztec codices are manuscripts that were written and painted by tlacuilos (codex creators).
  • Pre-colonial codices differ from colonial codices in that they are largely pictorial and not meant to symbolize spoken or written narratives.
  • Scholars now have access to a body of around 500 colonial-era codices, as well as a limited number of pre-colonial codices, though there are very few surviving codices from the pre-colonial era.
  • Like all pre-colonial codices, it was originally entirely pictorial in nature, although some Spanish descriptions were later added.

• Codices of the Mixtec

  • They made codices to document important historical events in their society.
  • This time of expansion is no doubt recorded in a large number of deerskin manuscripts, called codices, only eight of which have survived.
  • Mixtec codices represent a type of writing that's classified as logographic, meaning the characters and pictures used represent complete words and ideas instead of syllables or sounds.
  • Common topics found in the codices are biographies of rulers and other influential figures, records of elite family trees, mythologies, and accounts of ceremonies.
  • Mixtec codices were made of deerskin and folded like an accordion.

• The Mixtec

  • The Mixtec are well known in the anthropological world for their codices, or phonetic pictures, in which they wrote their history and genealogies in deerskin in the "fold-book" form.
  • The best-known story of the Mixtec codices is that of Lord Eight Deer, named after the day on which he was born, whose personal name was Jaguar Claw, and whose epic history is related in several codices.
  • Codices can be read from right to left and often measure many feet long.
  • The preservation of these extremely rare Codices paints a distinct picture of Mesoamerica right before the arrival of Spanish forces.

• Beatus Manuscripts

  • Considered together, the Beatus codices are among the most important Spanish and Mozarabic medieval manuscripts, and have been the subject of extensive scholarly and antiquarian enquiry.
  • Explain why the Beatus codices are among the most important Spanish and Mozarabic medieval manuscripts.

• The Mixteca-Puebla Tradition

  • Primarily producing work in stone, wood, and metal, they are well known for their "Codices," or phonetic pictures in which their history and genealogies were written.

• Enduring Cultures

  • The Mayans also evolved the only true writing system native to the Americas using pictographs and syllabic elements in the form of texts and codices inscribed on stone, pottery, wood, or highly perishable books made from bark paper.

• The Justinian Code

  • There existed three codices of imperial laws and other individual laws, many of which conflicted or were out of date.

• Illustrated Books in the Early Middle Ages

  • Considered together, the Beatus codices are among the most important Spanish and Mozarabic medieval manuscripts, and have been the subject of extensive scholarly and antiquarian inquiry.