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an image of a piece of cloth that has been made to look like a piece of clotha close up of a piece of paper with drawings on itan image of a piece of paper with a drawing on itan old piece of paper with drawings on it on a white surfacean old piece of paper with a painting on itan image of a piece of paper with a painting on itan image of a piece of paper with a painting on itan old piece of paper with designs on it sitting on a tablethree pieces of ancient art are displayed on a white surfacean old book with drawings on it sitting on top of a tablea piece of paper that is hanging on a wall
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27 - Mixteca-Puebla Tradition Codex Fragment. Mexico. Colonial Pe…

Estimate €50,000 - €65,000
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Description
Mixteca-Puebla Tradition Codex Fragment. Mexico. Colonial Period. Circa 1800. Ink and pigments on parchment. 18.5 x 115.5 cm. An interesting fragment of a pictographic manuscript executed on prepared skin, arranged in a folding screen or screenfold format, following the traditional structure of pre-Hispanic and colonial Mesoamerican codices. The composition unfolds through a succession of figurative scenes rendered in pigments of red, blue, ochre, black and green, depicting richly attired figures, glyphs, ritual elements and a variety of symbolic motifs characteristic of the indigenous pictographic tradition. The iconography belongs to the visual universe of the so-called Mixteca-Puebla style, one of the most refined and complex artistic languages of pre-Hispanic Mesoamerica. By virtue of its formal characteristics, the work particularly recalls some of the great manuscripts of the so-called Borgia Group—including the Borgia, Vaticanus B, Cospi and Fejérváry-Mayer codices—renowned for their complex ritual, calendrical and religious programmes. Although it does not appear to be an identifiable fragment from any of these specific codices, the execution demonstrates a remarkable understanding of traditional indigenous models and their graphic conventions. The present work may be interpreted as an early copy, circa 1800, or as an erudite recreation inspired by Mesoamerican codices, probably produced in Mexico during the late colonial period or the early years of the nineteenth century. Today, manuscripts of this type constitute valuable testimony to the interest that ancient indigenous traditions aroused among collectors, scholars and institutions at a time when the great pre-Hispanic codices remained little known and difficult to access. Beyond its iconographic interest, the piece stands as a historical document of the reception and transmission of Mesoamerican culture, preserving the fascination that ancient codices exerted upon successive generations of artists, scholars and collectors. Provenance: - Former United States collection, prior to 1950. - Spanish private collection. This lot is an import, so it is guaranteed to have an export permit from the Ministry of Culture and is exempt from the Ministry of Culture’s export fees for buyers outside the European Union.
About the sale Dialogues with the Past: Vestigia
Auction location
Auction time 07/02/2026 at 7:00 PM
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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