If a consecutive history of the ancient people of Central America and
Mexico were ever written, it has been lost. Probably nothing of the kind
ever was written in the manner which we call history, although there
must have been regular annals of some kind. The ruins show that they had
the art of writing, and that, at the south, this art was more developed,
more like a phonetic system of writing than that found in use among the
Aztecs. The inscriptions of Palenque, and the characters used in some of
the manuscript books that have been preserved, are not the same as the
"Mexican Picture Writing." It is known that books or manuscript writings
were abundant among them in the ages previous to the Aztec period. They
had an accurate measure of the solar year and a system of chronology,
and many of their writings were historical. Among the Mayas, and in
other communities of the same family, writing was largely used in the
time of the Spaniards. It was common also among the Aztecs, but they
used "picture writing." Las Casas wrote on this point as follows:
"It should be known that in all the commonwealths of these countries, in
the kingdoms of New Spain and elsewhere, among other professions duly
filled by suitable persons was that of chronicler and historian. These
chroniclers had knowledge of the origin of the kingdoms, and of whatever
related to religion and the gods, as well as to the founders of towns
and cities. They recorded the history of kings, and of the modes of
their election and succession; of their labors, actions, wars, and
memorable deeds, good and bad; of the virtuous men or heroes of former
days, their great deeds, the wars they had waged, and how they had
distinguished themselves; who had been the earliest settlers, what had
been their ancient customs, their triumphs, and defeats. They knew, in
fact, whatever pertained to history, and were able to give an account of
all past events. * * * These chroniclers had likewise to calculate the
days, months, and years; and though they had no writing like ours, they
had their symbols and characters through which they understood every
thing; and they had great books, which were composed with such ingenuity
and art that our characters were really of no great assistance to them.
Our priests have seen those books, and I myself have seen them likewise,
though many were burned at the instigation of the monks, who were afraid
they might impede the work of conversion."
Books such as those here described by Las Casas must have contained
important historical information. The older books, belonging to the ages
of Copan and Palenque, went to decay doubtless long previous to his
time, in the wars and revolutions of the Toltec period, or by the wear
of time. The later books, not otherwise lost, were destroyed by Aztec
and Spanish vandalism. According to tradition, and the testimony of
writings still in existence when the Spaniards went there, the Aztec or
Mexican sovereign Ytzcoatl destroyed many of the old Toltec books. His
aim was probably to exterminate among the people all memory of the
previous times. Such things have been done with similar motives, as we
know, in other countries, by successful usurpers and conquerors. We
learn from Spanish writers that a still greater destruction of the old
books was effected by the more ignorant and fanatical of the Spanish
priests who were established in the country as missionaries after the
Conquest. This is stated by Las Casas, himself one of the missionaries.
Besides the many smaller bonfires of this fanaticism, there is record of
a great conflagration, under the auspices of Bishop Zumarraga, in which
a vast collection of these old writings was consumed. As the writing was
all on paper (which had long been used in the country), the burning was
easily accomplished.