Un peculiar ejemplo de arte indígena novohispano: la adarga realizada por los amantecas para su rey Felipe II
An Odd Example of Indigenous Art in New Spain: The Adarga Made by Amantecas for Their King, Philip the Second

Summary/Abstract: An exceptional shield is preserved in the Royal Armoury in Madrid. This “adarga de parada” was made of feathers by indigenous Mexican artisans as a gift for the Spanish King, Philip the Second. The aim of this paper is to study the iconographic elements of this late sixteenth- century shield and try to provide more details concerning its significance and authorship, both material and intellectual. By means of a detailed comparison of each composition with other representations from medieval, Renaissance or Indigenous Mesoamerican traditions, we will be able to understand the underlying mechanism and the aesthetic adaptability of some crafts from New Spain. We will also show the possible access to Greco-Roman or medieval texts, codices or any masterpiece contemporary to the elaboration of the shield. Moreover, we will address the pre- Hispanic necessity of an “opposite enemy” in combat, where Muslims are now incorporated from Christian imaginary. This theme, which covers the entire composition, is combined with the defense of Faith and the war against Heresy. All this will be framed in the policy of tolerance in the Europe of the Counter-Reformation. It will also give us the key to understand certain local transformations that were taking place in the Nahuatl writing system.

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