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History of the Inca Empire: An Account of the Indians' Customs and Their Origin, Together with a Treatise on Inca Legends, History, and Social Institutions
Translated & edited by Roland Hamilton from the holograph manuscript in the Biblioteca Capitular y Colombina de Sevilla; foreword by John Howland Rowe
The Historia del Nuevo Mundo, set down by Father Bernabe Cobo during the first half of the 17th century, represents a singulary valuable source on Inca culture. Working directly frorn the original document, Roland Hamilton has translated that part of Cobo's massive manuscripts that focuses on the history of the kingdom of Peru. The volume includes a general account of the aspect, character & dress of the Indians as well as a superb treatise on the Incas--their legends, history & social institutions.
The Historia del Nuevo Mundo, set down by Father Bernabe Cobo during the first half of the 17th century, represents a singulary valuable source on Inca culture. Working directly frorn the original document, Roland Hamilton has translated that part of Cobo's massive manuscripts that focuses on the history of the kingdom of Peru. The volume includes a general account of the aspect, character & dress of the Indians as well as a superb treatise on the Incas--their legends, history & social institutions.
- GenresHistoryAnthropology
301 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1653
About the author
Bernabé Cobo
17 books2 followersBernabé Cobo (born at Lopera in Spain, 1582; died at Lima, Peru, 9 October 1657) was a Spanish Jesuit missionary and writer. He played a part in the early history of quinine by his description of cinchona bark; he brought some to Europe on a visit in 1632.
He was a thorough student of nature and man in Spanish America. His long residence (61 years), his position as a priest and, several times, as a missionary, gave him unusual opportunities for obtaining reliable information. The Spanish botanist Cavanilles gave the name of Cobæa to a genus of plants belonging to the Bignoniaceae of Mexico, Cobaea scandens being its most striking representative.
He wrote two works, one of which is incomplete. It is also stated that he wrote a work on botany in ten volumes, which, it seems, is lost.
Of his main work, to which biographers give the title "Historia general de las Indias", and which he finished in 1653, only the first half is known and has appeared in print (four volumes, at Seville, 1890 and years succeeding). The remainder, in which he treats, or claims to have treated, of every geographical and political subdivision in detail, was either never finished, or is lost.
His other book appeared in print in 1882, and forms part of the "History of the Inca Empire" mentioned, but he made a separate manuscript of its in 1639, and so it became published as "Historia de la fundación de Lima", a few years before the publication of the principal manuscripts.
The "History of the Inca Empire" may, in American literature, be compared with one work only, the "General and Natural history of the Indies" by Oviedo. On the animals and plants of the continent, it is more complete than Nieremberg, Hernandez, and Monardes. In regard to the pre-Columbian past and vestiges, Cobo is, for the South American west coast, a source of primary importance, for close observations of customs and manners, and generally accurate descriptions of the principal ruins of South America.
He was a thorough student of nature and man in Spanish America. His long residence (61 years), his position as a priest and, several times, as a missionary, gave him unusual opportunities for obtaining reliable information. The Spanish botanist Cavanilles gave the name of Cobæa to a genus of plants belonging to the Bignoniaceae of Mexico, Cobaea scandens being its most striking representative.
He wrote two works, one of which is incomplete. It is also stated that he wrote a work on botany in ten volumes, which, it seems, is lost.
Of his main work, to which biographers give the title "Historia general de las Indias", and which he finished in 1653, only the first half is known and has appeared in print (four volumes, at Seville, 1890 and years succeeding). The remainder, in which he treats, or claims to have treated, of every geographical and political subdivision in detail, was either never finished, or is lost.
His other book appeared in print in 1882, and forms part of the "History of the Inca Empire" mentioned, but he made a separate manuscript of its in 1639, and so it became published as "Historia de la fundación de Lima", a few years before the publication of the principal manuscripts.
The "History of the Inca Empire" may, in American literature, be compared with one work only, the "General and Natural history of the Indies" by Oviedo. On the animals and plants of the continent, it is more complete than Nieremberg, Hernandez, and Monardes. In regard to the pre-Columbian past and vestiges, Cobo is, for the South American west coast, a source of primary importance, for close observations of customs and manners, and generally accurate descriptions of the principal ruins of South America.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
December 18, 2020
Cobo is the go-to source for what is known of the Inca's history, unfortunately. While he apparently did the best he knew how to he was very limited in his resources. This is very much an approved history of the ruling family, as the puppet Inca installed by the Spanish still held life and death power and stories reflecting poorly on his ancestors would have been left out. Cobo also made the same mistake that most modern historians make, thinking that there was a single authoritative accounting that could somehow be extracted from an extremely flexible oral history tradition. This means that Cobo's narrative is different from Garsilaso's, which in turn is different from Guaman Poma's, which is different from ...
Having noted this, and accepting the fact that it was written down from the viewpoint of an European barbarian, Cobo did an admirable job of recounting the official history in a clear and logical progression. Just don't make the mistake of thinking it's the *only* version or actual history.
Having noted this, and accepting the fact that it was written down from the viewpoint of an European barbarian, Cobo did an admirable job of recounting the official history in a clear and logical progression. Just don't make the mistake of thinking it's the *only* version or actual history.
July 30, 2026
Really cool to hear about all the history and society of the Incans through one of the only old sources of it. For the most part Cobo is a curious chiller but sometimes you get to a section and feel judgment.
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December 27, 2012Source: SubTitles
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews