XXVI Congreso Internacional de Americanistas

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Sahagún (7) says that he asscmbled the oldest and the wisest of tk
natives in "Tlatelolco", and after considering this question carefully,
th ey came to the deci s.ion that the Mexican N ew Year began on February
2nd, with the feast of Atlacahualco. León y Gama (8) based his calculations
on the History written by the native Cristóbal del Castillo, and
says the Mexican year began with the feast "Tititl Itzcalli". However,
Titiít and f tzcalli are two distinct feast. Seler (9) ,based his calculations
on the date that both Sahagún and the Cristóbal del Castillo give for
the Conques.t of Mexico, -the day "I-Coatl in the year 3-Calli" (August
13, 1521); and yet, in his Commentary on the Humboldt lVISS. (SGA,
volume 1, page 181), he shows how the two equivalent dates given by
Sahagún, for the arrival of the Spaniards in Mexico Tenochtitlan, and
the Conquest, do not check up with each other ; and that there is an erro,
of 20 days between those: t\Vo dates. Thus, '\Ve have absolute proof that the
natives of lVIexico Tenochtitlan and Tlaltelolco misinformed the early
writers.
However, the solution to this problem is to ·be found among tho!'e old
lVISS. of the 16th .century, that have been carefully preserved all these
years in the ARCHIVES OF (IJ-IE INDIES OF SEVILLE and THE
ROYAL ACADEMY OF HISTORY IN MADRID. On February
26th, 1580, the natives of "Aculma", comarca de "Tezcuco" (10), declared
before His Majesty's Magistrates that the first feast of the Mexican
year BEGAN IN MARCH, AND ivVAS CALLED TLACAXIPE­
HUALIZTLI. In the following year, the natives of "Teutitlan en
Guaxaca", also affirmed before the ¡King's Officers that the first feast of
the year \Vas Tlacaxipehualiztli. In a foot-note, on this same page 217
of volume IV of "Papeles de N ueva España", Paso y Troncoso says;
"The calendar of Teutitlan agrees with the one which P. Motolinía describes
In his 'Memoriales' (pages 37-38), in which Tlacaxipehualiztli is also the first
feast of the Mexican year. But, please observe that 1 am referring to the
genuine calendar of Motolinía, beca use two other calendars haye been introduced
into hi s 'Memoriales', whi