Fray Antonio Vazquez de Espinosa (born in

Jerez de la Frontera Jerez de la Frontera (), or simply Jerez (), is a Spanish city and Municipalities of Spain, municipality in the province of Cádiz in the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia, in southwestern Spain, located midway bet ...

and died

Seville Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...

, 1630) was a Spanish friar of the

Discalced Carmelites The Discalced Carmelites, known officially as the Order of the Discalced Carmelites of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel ( la, Ordo Fratrum Carmelitarum Discalceatorum Beatae Mariae Virginis de Monte Carmelo) or the Order of Discalced Carme ...

originally from

whose ''Compendio y Descripcion de las Indias Occidentales'' has become a source of detail for the

history of South America The history of South America is the study of the past, particularly the written record, oral histories, and traditions, passed down from generation to generation on the continent of South America. The continent continues to be home to indigeno ...

, since the manuscript's discovery in the

Vatican Library The Vatican Apostolic Library ( la, Bibliotheca Apostolica Vaticana, it, Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana), more commonly known as the Vatican Library or informally as the Vat, is the library of the Holy See, located in Vatican City. Formally es ...

in 1929. Travelling in

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

and

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

where he proselytized among the Native Americans, he returned to Spain in 1622, where he continued to move about, in Málaga, Madrid, Seville and other places. He was the author of the following printed works: * ''Confessionario general, luz y guía del cielo y método para poderse confesar'' *''Viaje y Navegación del año de 1622 que hizo la flota de Nueva España y Honduras'' (Málaga, 1624) *''Sumario de Indulgencias'' (Málaga 1623) *''Circunstancias para los tratos y contratos de las Indias del Perú y Nueva España'' (Málaga, 1624) *''Indiæ Descriptionem'' The work he is now remembered for, he never published. The manuscript was discovered in the

Barberini The House of Barberini are a family of the Italian nobility that rose to prominence in 17th century Rome. Their influence peaked with the election of Cardinal Maffeo Barberini to the papal throne in 1623, as Pope Urban VIII. Their urban palace ...

archives of the Vatican Library in 1929 by Dr

Charles Upson Clark Charles Upson Clark (1875–1960) was a professor of history at Columbia University. He discovered the Barberini Codex, the earliest Aztec writings on herbal medicines extant. Biography Clark was born in 1875 to Edward Perkins Clark and Cat ...

, who edited it for the series ''Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections'' in English (1942) and Spanish (1944). It was reprinted in 1948.

External links

Bio-bibliographical note
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vazquez de Espinosa, Antonio Year of birth missing 1630 deaths Spanish Roman Catholic missionaries 17th-century Spanish Roman Catholic priests Spanish male writers People from Jerez de la Frontera Discalced Carmelites Roman Catholic missionaries in New Spain Roman Catholic missionaries in Peru Spanish expatriates in Mexico Spanish expatriates in Peru