Collision of Worlds

A Deep History of the Fall of Aztec Mexico and the Forging of New Spain

David M. Carballo

Publication to coincide with the 500th anniversary of the fall of the Aztecs (1519-1521)
The comparative trans-Atlantic history provides new perspectives on the conquest

Collision of Worlds

A Deep History of the Fall of Aztec Mexico and the Forging of New Spain

David M. Carballo

Description

Mexico of five centuries ago was witness to one of the most momentous encounters between human societies, when a group of Spaniards led by Hernando Cortés joined forces with tens of thousands of Mesoamerican allies to topple the mighty Aztec Empire. It served as a template for the forging of much of Latin America and initiated the globalized world we inhabit today. The violent clash that culminated in the Aztec-Spanish war of 1519-21 and the new colonial order it created were millennia in the making, entwining the previously independent cultural developments of both sides of the Atlantic.

Collision of Worlds provides a deep history of this encounter, one that considers temporal depth in the richly layered cultures of Mexico and Spain, from their prehistories to the urban and imperial societies they built in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. Leading Mesoamerican archaeologist David Carballo offers a unique perspective on these fabled events with a focus on the physical world of places and things, their similarities and differences in trans-Atlantic perspective, and their interweaving in an encounter characterized by conquest and colonialism, but also resilience on the part of Native peoples. An engrossing and sweeping account, Collision of Worlds debunks long-held myths and contextualizes the deep roots and enduring consequences of the Aztec-Spanish conflict as never before.

Collision of Worlds

A Deep History of the Fall of Aztec Mexico and the Forging of New Spain

David M. Carballo

Collision of Worlds

A Deep History of the Fall of Aztec Mexico and the Forging of New Spain

David M. Carballo

Author Information

David M. Carballo, Associate Professor of Archaeology, Anthropology, and Latin American Studies, Boston University

David M. Carballo is Associate Professor of Archaeology, Anthropology, and Latin American Studies at Boston University. His previous books include Urbanization and Religion in Ancient Central America.

Collision of Worlds

A Deep History of the Fall of Aztec Mexico and the Forging of New Spain

David M. Carballo

Reviews and Awards

"Well researched, up-to-date, and even-handed, Collision of Worlds is a much-needed retelling of the Aztec overthrow, giving due weight to archaeological findings and indigenous sources, especially those written in Nahuatl by eyewitnesses who let us see into the Mexican side of a complex tragedy long told from mostly European viewpoints." -- Times Literary Supplement

"Illuminating and richly detailed, this fascinating history shows readers that worlds are not lost; tendrils of what has gone before intertwine with, fashion, and forever mark the hybrid societies of today." -- Historical Novel Society

"I so recommend David M. Carballo's dazzling and masterful book on the Aztecs and the Spanish, their similarities and differences." -- Simon Sebag Montefiore, Aspects of History

"David Carballo has given us 'two for one' in this deep history of the great encounter of Spain and Mesoamerica that forged the Mexico of today. Rather than limit his focus on the dynamic five-year period between the arrival of Spaniards in 1517 and the fall of the Aztec capital of 1521, this book is a monumental work of long range historical and archaeological comparison of ethnicities, myths, cities, markets, world views, and human actions. No other history of the war for the Aztec capital reveals the cultural depth or historical breadth of what was truly at stake when the Aztec ruler Cuauhtemoc yielded to Cortés at the pyramids of Tlatelolco in August of 1521." -- Davíd Carrasco, author of The Aztecs: A Very Short Introduction

"David Carballo weaves a fascinating historical tapestry. Collision of Worlds is authoritative, evenhanded, and draws on a broad array of sources. This outstanding account helps us understand the roots of today's globalized world." -- Brian Fagan, author of The Little Ice Age

"Collision of Worlds takes a new look at the world-changing events of 1519-1521 and the Spanish invasion of Mexico. Archaeologist David Carballo examines two landscapes--Medillín, Spain, home of Hernando Cortés, and Cholula, Mexico dominated by its Great Pyramid--to illustrate the entanglements of deep history and place that shaped New Spain and the foundations of the global world." -- Deborah Nichols, coeditor of The Oxford Handbook of the Aztecs

"Collision of Worlds is a unique and resonant achievement, an old story told in a new way. By adopting an archaeologist's perspective, David Carballo is able to offer a fresh and thought-provoking take on the history of the Spanish-Aztec encounter. And by reaching back into the deep Mesoamerican and Iberian pasts, he helps us to better understand that encounter, its outcomes, and its significance." -- Matthew Restall, author of When Montezuma Met Cortés

"In this remarkable work of comparative history and archaeology, David Carballo situates the Spanish-Mexica wars of the 16th century within a parallel account of Iberia and Mesoamerica, stretching back into humanity's deep past." -- David Wengrow, author of What Makes Civilization?

"Illuminating and richly detailed, this fascinating history shows readers that worlds are not lost; tendrils of what has gone before intertwine with, fashion, and forever mark the hybrid societies of today." -- Historical Novel Society