This lesson is centred upon an incredible and evocative contemporary source: the Codex Azcatitlan.

The Codex Azcatitlan was produced soon after the Spanish arrived in – and subsequently colonised – the Aztec Empire.

In the lesson, students are encouraged to recognise the huge value of this source, due to the insights it offers into the experiences of those who were ‘colonised’.  The indigenous peoples who tend to be marginalised in studies of the Spanish conquest of the Americas.

First, students spend some time familiarising themselves with some of the images from the Codex. They match up these images with captions and then organise them into chronological order. This tells the story of the Aztec Empire’s rise and fall.

Then, they are set the intriguing challenge of trying to ‘de-code’ the images, using a ‘de-coder’ sheet which outlines the significance of a number of commonly-used Aztec symbols.

Finally, students respond to the enquiry question, explaining what the Codex tells us not only about the chain of events that led to the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire, but about the experiences, ideas and attitudes of those who were colonised by Cortés and his soldiers. 

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