Codex Vaticanus B

With the arrival of Christopher Columbus in America at the end of the 15th century a great age of exploration began across the entire globe. However, this golden age of discovery also had a negative side, among them the downfall of numerous ancient cultures in the newly discovered and colonized regions. Fortunately, a few artifacts and documents survive, through which the knowledge of these downfallen worlds is preserved. The so-called Codex Vaticanus B from the Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana plays a special role for in the precolonial culture of the Aztecs in Mexico.

A Typical Aztec Manuscript

Codex 3773 or Codex Vaticanus B has preserved its precolonial look and feel to today and is consequently a unique testimonial to its origin. The codex consisting of 48 parchment pages is 15.5 x 13.5 cm when folded and is 7.3 meters long altogether when unfolded! The illuminated manuscript from Mexico is painted on both sides and presents Aztec culture, its fundamentals, and rituals in wonderful miniatures.

The Aztec Calendar in Focus

Alongside the calculation of the phases of the moon, feast days, and the 260-day calendar of the Aztecs with monthly rules inter alia, Codex Vaticanus B has twelve chapters with detailed explanations of the zodiac signs and a seven-part text group with comprehensive planetary teachings. Additionally, the illuminated manuscript provides information about the practice of humorism, which was already practiced since antiquity and even in realms as remote as Mexico. Additionally, medical aspects such as bloodletting, examining the color of the blood, cupping, and a few additional recipes are presented, which had health benefits.

The Artistic Content of the Illuminated Manuscript

All of these various aspects of Aztec culture are presented to the observant beholder in brightly colored miniatures, which combine human and animal figures with abstract, meaningful geometric patterns. Alongside tabular pages there are large-format primary pictures, which are surrounded by pictorial friezes. These appear almost like a visual language. Codex Vaticanus B – as a part of the Borgia manuscript group of the Vatican library – gives an exciting inside look into Aztec Mexico with its fascinating image program, which brings an entire culture back to life!