Camino del cielo en lengua mexicana: con todos los requisitos necessarios para conseguir este fin, co[n] todo lo que vn [Christ]iano deue creer, saber, y obrar, desde el punto que tiene vso de razon, hasta que muere
Author: Martín de León
Year: 1611
Publisher: Diego López Dávalos
Place: Mexico City
Description:
[12]+160+[7] leaves with 2 woodcut illustrations. Small quarto (7 1/2" x 5 3/4") bound in original contemporary vellum with hand written title to spine. (Woodbridge, Printing in Colonial Spanish America, page 26). Medina, Mexico 260; Palau 135423; Pilling 2252; Sabin 40080 ("extremely scarce") First edition.
An early catechism, confessional, and church calendar in Nahuatl, with Spanish on facing pages in some parts.
This was the last known book printed by Dávalos, who used the type and press inherited from his father-in-law Antonio de Espinosa, the second printer in the New World. The printing press at the Colegio de Santa Cruz de Santiago Tlatelolco or Colegio de la Santa Cruz de Tlatelolco was established by Maria de Sansoric or Sansores, second widow of Pedro Ocharte, in the year 1597. Its importance lies in the publication of religious works translated from Spanish into Nahuatl and other native languages for the Christianization of the inhabitants of New Spain in 1601, it is believed that Ocharte was associated with Diego Lopez Davalos, the husband of María de Espinosa who, in turn, was the daughter of Antonio de Espinosa. Later, Luis Ocharte Figueroa would sell his workshop Lopez Davalos, therefore, the old printing presses of Juan Pablos, Pedro Antonio de Espinosa Ocharte and merged by the year 1605. From 1606 the printing press was in charge of López Dávalos and his wife María de Espinosa, who gave it a great boom, since they did not focus solely on the needs of the College, since they were appointed printers of the Holy Office and gave light several of the university theses. Cornelio Adrián César and Juan Ruiz collaborated with them . Following the acquisition of the workshop by López Dávalos, five works were shot over the next five years. The works were made difficult by the departure of César in 1608. In 1612 the printing press was reborn under the direction of the widow of López Dávalos together with Juan Ruiz until 1615, the year in which the printing press closed its doors.
Condition:
Moderate wear; contents worn, lacking 5 leaves (3 leaves of preliminaries (2-4), 1 leaf of text (f. 16) 1 leaf of errata (at the very end) and and front endpapers, moderate damp staining, extensive early manuscript notes; ownership inscription on rear free endpaper, lacks ties, text block separating from vellum. Only 13 copies located on OCLC else a poor but rare copy.