Exquisite maps from the 15th through 20th centuries chart the conception and colonization of Mexico from the periods of discovery, settlement, war, and modernity. Featured cartographic styles range from maritime, to military, to topographic; their presentation from metaphorical to practical. The purposes behind these maps extend from religious, to political, to financial, and more.  

 

The Prima Estas Munci, a 1493 woodblock “map” of Eden, was printed the year Christopher Columbus returned from the New World. Meanwhile, a 1529 illustrated map by Hans Luft pictures the New World as conceived by the prophet Daniel in a dream.  

 

Later maps detail the interactions between Native peoples and Spanish Conquistadors, the migration of the Aztec, the development of Texas, and modern Mexican postal routes. 

 

Selections from Sul Ross State University’s Museum of the Big Bend’s Yana and Marty Davis Map Collection are paired with art and artifacts from the permanent collection of the Museum of the Southwest to present an immersive and layered interpretation of Mexico’s historical identity.