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What Is a Codex?
Basically, a big book
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Butterfly-and Jaguar-Fish in Book 11 of the Florentine Codex (“On Earthly Things”). Ms. Mediceo Palatino 220, 1577, fols. 62v and 63. Courtesy of the Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana, Florence, and by permission of MiBACT
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How do you describe a work of art?
With art terms, of course! We’ve heard you, and we’re here to answer your Frequently Asked Art Questions (FAAQs).
Today, let’s take a look at the Florentine Codex, recently added to Getty's online archives. But…what is a codex?
Watch the video, or read on below!
A codex is a Latin term that refers to a manuscript, typically handwritten and bound in book form. Books might seem like an old technology, but that wasn’t always the case.
Book of the Dead Papyrus of Pasherashakhet, son of Taber (detail), 375–275 BCE, Egyptian. Papyrus and ink, 10 ¼ x 111 in. Getty Museum, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. H. P. Kraus, 83.AI.46.2
Tablet with Instructions for the Deceased in the Underworld, 350–300 BC, Greek. Gold, 7/8 × 1 7/16 × 1/16 in. Getty Museum, Gift of Lenore Barozzi, 75.AM.19
Before codices (the plural of codex), people in many parts of the world wrote on things like scrolls, clay or stone tablets, or papyrus. The transition to the codex was a big change in the history of writing. Readers could now flip to specific sections more quickly, and they were easier to carry for information on the go.
Battles between Mexica warriors and Spanish conquerors and their Indigenous allies in Book 12 of the Florentine Codex (“Of the Conquest of New Spain”); on this folio and others, the images completely substitute text in the Spanish column. Ms. Mediceo Palatino 220, 1577, fol. 60. Courtesy of the Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana, Florence, and by permission of MiBACT.
When the Spanish arrived in Mexico in the 16th century, they recognized that these Indigenous manuscripts were like European books and applied the name “codex.”
Papalomichi (“butterfly fish”) in Book 11 of the Florentine Codex (detail). Bernardino de Sahagún, Antonio Valeriano, Alonso Vegerano, Martín Jacobita, Pedro de San Buenaventura, Diego de Grado, Bonifacio Maximiliano, Mateo Severino, et al., Ms. Mediceo Palatino 220, 1577, fol. 62v. Courtesy the Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana, Florence, and by permission of MiBACT
Images of plants and animals from Book 11 of the Florentine Codex: Cuitlachtli (“wolf” or “bear”), Tapachtli (“shell” or “river mollusk”), Nopalli (“prickly pear cactus”), Elotl (“young ear of maize or corn”). Ms. Mediceo Palatino 220, 1577, fol. 5v, 64v, 126, 249v respectively. Courtesy the Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana, Florence, and by permission of MiBACT
Mexica warrior against Spanish conquistadors in Book 12 of the Florentine Codex (“Of the Conquest of New Spain”). Ms. Mediceo Palatino 220, 1577, fol. 34. Courtesy of the Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana, Florence, and by permission of MiBACT.
The massive 12-book Florentine Codex is a combination of European and Mexican bookmaking traditions and gives a rare look into the world of Nahua people in Mexico before and during colonization—in their own words. The codex is written in Nahuatl, Spanish, and also includes captivating imagery to help tell these rich stories.
Today, “codex” can refer to any type of book, but especially big works like the Florentine Codex. Want to check out it yourself? The physical copy is located at the Medici Library in Florence, Italy. Or, you can check out its colorful illustrations and translated text in Getty’s new online edition.
