Boxer Codex (HB)

In 1947, Iberian colonial maritime scholar Professor Charles R. Boxer acquired a late 16th-century manuscript written by an anonymous sixteenth-century scribe who had compiled several eyewitness accounts of both Spanish and Portuguese expeditions. Through detailed descriptions and lavish illustrations, this manuscript depicted the customs, costumes, and ways of life of the various peoples of East and Southeast Asia, particularly the Philippine Islands.

In the decades since it came to light, an international constellation of scholars the world over has expanded our understanding of this valuable document and given us the clearest depiction of the lives of newly colonized Filipinos and the politics of early modern Asia. As such, Boxer Codex is indispensable in understanding both Iberian and Asian encounters at a pivotal time in world history.

Now this invaluable work is made accessible to a new generation of Filipinos and scholars with this bilingual edition, written in modern Spanish and English. It also marks the beginning of the commemoration of 500 years of Philippine-Spanish encounters from 1521 to 2021. An extensive introduction situates this work in a global context and presents the intertwined histories of academician Charles Boxer and Philippine National Artist Carlos Quirino, whose friendship ignited global interest and passionate study of the codex.