Chronicle
Historical Accounts of the Conquests of Tierra Firme
Noticias historiales de las conquistas de Tierra Firme
Pedro Simón · 1627
Synopsis
Bachué emerges from Lake Iguaque with a child in her arms, peoples the earth with him, then returns to it changed into a serpent. Bochica crosses the country teaching people to weave, to sow and to live in society. At Guatavita, the new ruler covers himself in gold dust and dives into the lake while offerings are thrown into it. The chronicler reports these stories as they were told to him, and also notes what the conquerors did to the men who told them to him.
Context
The chronicle was written from archives and from testimony gathered from old conquistadors and from Indians. The chapter on the Guatavita ceremony, which the Spaniards had not seen but had heard described, is the first source of the golden legend. The work is divided into three parts, each in seven noticias, each in chapters, and is cited in that order. Only the first part appeared in the author's lifetime, at Cuenca; an attempt at a complete edition, two centuries later, was not carried through, and for a long time only fragments were published.
Who it is for
A long and detailed chronicle, with no French translation, to be consulted by chapters. The passage on Guatavita is short and is worth the reading on its own.
Prizes and reception
A reference source on the conquest of New Granada and on the origin of the El Dorado myth; the historians of the region all cite it.
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