Diego de Landa
(1524-1579)

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Franciscan friar born in Toledo, Spain. Arrived in Yucatan, Mexico, in 1549. He spent the next three decades evangelizing the Mayas throughout the Yucatan peninsula. His religious zeal prompted the destruction of Maya artifacts and codice books at Mani. He later realized that in would have been easier to convert the Mayas had he understood their history and beliefs. As a result, he diligently attempted the recover the lost information. In 1566 he wrote Relacion de las Cosas de Yucatan, which provides an understanding of the Mayas. He became bishop of Yucatan in 1572 and died in Merida seven years later.
 
 
 

Izamal, Yucatan, Mexico
Izamal, Yucatan, Mexico

 
 
Convento de San Antonio de Padua, Izamal, Mexico


Landa's erroneous interpretation of Maya hieroglyphs.



Bishop Diego de Landa
Landa's Maya Alphabet
Convento de San Antonio de Padua, Izamal, Mexico
El Convento de Maní
El ex convento de Maní aguarda su anunciada restauración
El acto de fe de Fray Diego de Landa aún causa recelo entre los habitantes de Maní