Codex Fejérváry-Mayer

What it is

Small — it fits in the hands — and remarkably precise. It is also called the Tonalámatl of the pochtecas, because it is thought the merchants used it to choose favourable days for travel.

It is pre-Hispanic, or from the very first colonial years.

Of the Borgia group

It belongs to the so-called Borgia group, with the Borgia, the Cospi, the Laud and Vaticanus B. Its origin is debated: it is not clear that these come from the Valley of Mexico, as the Borbonicus and the Aubin do.

The first page

Its opening plate is probably the most cited image in all Mesoamerican cosmology: the four directions laid out in a cross, each with its tree, its bird and its energy, and Xiuhtecuhtli at the centre. The map of the world on a single page.

A good part of what the app tells in Directions and in the Lords of the Night comes from there.

Where it is

In the World Museum, Liverpool, England. It carries the names of Gábor Fejérváry, who owned it, and of Joseph Mayer, who gave the collection to the city.

How to cite this page