Mural Paintings of Ixmiquilpan. Barbarism and Civilization

Abstract

Abstract This paper deals with the 16th century mural paintings that cover the walls of the parish church of San Miguel Arcángel, a former Augustinian mission in Ixmiquilpan. The paintings represent warriors in battle and mixing the Western iconography with the prehispanic one. They are associated with the Chichimeca War (1540-1590), a conflict that threatened the existence of the Viceroyalty of New Spain (1535-1821). The article examines the images of “otherness” and related stereotypes conceiving the paintings as a place, where the identity of local inhabitants was discussed and putting particular emphasis on the pair of categories – barbarism and civilization. In terms of method, it is interdisciplinary and interpretative. It combines the classical historical, art historical concepts and methods with terms and procedures of anthropology and social science.