The third essay of our Humanities Core course requires us to be able to historically analyze a primary source from the past, specifically during the conquest/post-conquest of Spanish colonialism. And so, for my primary source, I have chosen to present the image of Alonso Chiguan Inga, as he is a stellar portrayal of an Incan nobleman (curaca) that had began the idea of the ‘dual authority’ that had become prominent between the two cultures of Spanish conquest. The very existence of this dual authority demonstrates the idea that during Spanish conquest, there had been a certain level of acceptance towards Spanish rule, however only to the extent in which the Inca could simultaneously capitalize and benefit upon their high rankings within this colonialization in order to preserve their own culture.
And why do I say he “began” the essential occurrence of dual authority? According to my secondary source, The Colonial Andes: Tapestries and Silverwork, 1530-1830, Alonso Chiguan Inga had been the first Incan nobleman before the noble family of Marcos Chiguan Topa. This secondary source contains an informational chapter of Alonso’s history and background, making up for that lack of clear information within my primary source.
My primary source also portrays numerous aspects that represent the preservation of Incan culture within this nobility under Spanish rule (which I had described in my last blog post), however I wanted to bring more focus to the presence of Amaru upon his shield. The fuzziness of the image itself makes it difficult to see this detail, however upon zooming in, there is the Amaru surrounding a lion, in which I also explain their context within my last blog post. And so, my next secondary source, Handbook of Incan Mythology, further validates and informs us of the significance and meaning of the Amaru, and why the Amaru had been so prevalent within images of nobility such as the painting of Alonso Chiguan Inga.
CITATIONS:
Phipps, Elena, et al. The Colonial Andes: Tapestries and Silverwork, 1530-1830. Metropolitan
Museum of Art, 2004.
Steele, Paul Richard, and Catherine J. Allen. Handbook of Inca Mythology. ABC-CLIO, 2004.
Unknown Peruvian. Alonso Chiguan Inga. circa 1740-1750, oil on canvas, Metropolitan
Museum of Art, New York.
Empire and Its Ruins 