Inventario y aprecio de los bienes de la testamentaria de don Antonio María Bucareli, Virrey de la Nueva España (1779)

About this book

Art historian Gustavo Curiel Méndez (Mexico City, 1952) critically addresses a multitude of relevant aspects around the palatial goods that belonged to the forty-sixth viceroy of New Spain. To do this, the author takes as a basis the rich inventories made at the death of the ruler, which occurred in Mexico City in 1779 as part of the detailed and formidable testament of viceroy don Antonio María Bucareli y Ursúa (1779). The study also examines in a special way the remarkable and modern library that he gathered in the government palace and which consisted of more than 580 titles. Through the deep analysis of the sources of first-hand of the inventory it was possible to learn about the sumptuary objects and those for which he had a special predilection and of his family and intimate relations with members of the high hierarchy who possessed noble titles. Finally, the events celebrated as a result of the expensive funerals and burial of the viceroy in the Collegiate Church of Guadalupe in Mexico City are also recounted.