Muerte de Atagualpa Inca

What it is

This pen-and-ink drawing, titled 'Conquista', was made by the indigenous Andean chronicler Felipe Guaman Poma de Ayala. It shows Spanish soldiers around a seated Inca ruler being executed, with a headless body and severed head shown at the scene.

Why it matters

The drawing records the Andean memory of the death of Atahualpa, the last Inca emperor, at the hands of the Spanish conquerors. As part of a larger chronicle criticizing Spanish rule, it reflects how indigenous Andeans remembered the violent end of their last emperor and the start of colonial rule.

Look closer

• What figures are shown around Atahualpa, and what roles do they seem to have?
• Why might the artist have included the severed head and body so directly?
• How does this image compare with written Spanish accounts of the same event?