In fact, until about 1600, more Africans were brought to Mexico than anywhere else in the New World.5 They were auctioned off in the port of Veracruz. Most were sent to work in the silver mines or on sugar plantations, but a sizable number were sold to the elite of Mexico City or to the nearby secondary city of Puebla de los Angeles. By the early 1600s, Mexico City had become one of the wealthiest and most impressive metropolises in the world, and every powerful Spaniard wished to be attended by a string of liveried black servants.
