The Mexica noble Cuauhtemoc, whose name roughly translates to swooping or falling eagle, was the eleventh and last tlatoani of the Aztec empire. He ruled from December 1520, following the death of Cuitlahuac due to smallpox, to August 1521, when the city fell to the Spanish. Although Cuauhtemoc was apparently quite young, he was already known as a great warrior. In August, after much of Tenochtitlan had already been destroyed, Cuauhtemoc was captured as he fled the city in a canoe. The painting is dominated by a watery, boggy landscape filled with canoes and brigantines, which proudly fly red and while imperial flags. According to some accounts, Cuauhtemoc fled with fifty canoes, carrying his relatives, other Mexica nobles and especially his riches, and this is the version that we see depicted in this painting. In the foreground Cuauhtemoc, recognizable because of his feathered and jeweled finery and impressive headpiece, stands in his canoe between three Spaniards, one of whom looks like Cortes (on the left), although he was not in fact present for the capture. This mustached Spaniard, identified in written accounts as Garcia de Holguin, the commander of a brigantine, stretches out his left arm to embrace the nobleman, although he also holds a rapier in his right hand. Although the artist of the paintings certainly never saw the individuals depicted in this work, there is a surprising degree of attention paid to the individual features of both Cuauhtemoc and his captors. Cuauhtemoc maintains his dignified composure despite the difficult circumstances, and his noble bearing is comparable to that of Motecuhzoma as he is pictured in the third painting of the series, when he met Cortes for the first time.

The Conquest of Mexico paintings, a series of eight works, tell the story of the 1521 Spanish conquest of the native Aztec people. A highlight of the Kislak Collection, they are significant both artistically and historically. They represent a bridge between the collections wealth of pre-Columbian objects and its extensive array of manuscripts, maps, and rare books from the period of exploration and the early colonial period.

The paintings are outstanding examples in this genre of history painting because of their early date, fine condition, and the skill of the (unknown) artists involved. Painted in Mexico during the second half of the seventeenth century, the Kislak series is considered the earliest of the three complete cycles of paintings of the Conquest that still exist.

Medium : oil on canvas : original size : 48"x 78"

Artist : Unknown

Created : The second half of the seventeenth century

Caption is courtesy of Arthur Dunkelman, Curator of the Kislak Collection

For more information visit the Early Americas Exhibit

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Product #: kislak237E