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Secondary sourcePainting1830

Valverde urging Atahualpa to convert

Henry Perronet Briggs (painting); engraved by W. Greatbach · 1830

An 1830 engraving after a painting by Henry Perronet Briggs, showing the friar Valverde urging Atahualpa to convert to Christianity at Cajamarca.

Shows Atahualpa being urged by the friar Valverde to convert, shortly before his capture by Pizarro.

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Black and white engraving of a 16th-century confrontation. A feathered, robed figure stands centre, flanked by women and attendants. A friar in a dark hooded robe holds an open book and speaks to him. Armoured Spanish soldiers stand at right, one holding a helmet-topped staff, and a kneeling man in dark clothing is in the foreground. Keys lie on the ground.
Valverde urging Atahualpa to convert, engraving by W. Greatbach after H.P. Briggs, 1830. Wellcome Collection, London.

About this source

What it is

An engraving made in 1830 after a painting by Henry Perronet Briggs, held by the Wellcome Collection. It shows a scene at Cajamarca, Peru, where the friar Vicente Valverde urges the Inca ruler Atahualpa to convert to Christianity.

Why it matters

The curators explain that Valverde points to a book and a cannon, representing the terms offered to the Incas, while Pizarro is shown reaching for his pistol nearby. According to the collection record, this discussion was followed by a massacre of the Inca people. The image reflects how 19th-century British artists dramatized the fateful meeting that led to Atahualpa's capture and the destruction of his empire.

Look closer

  • What does Valverde's gesture toward the book and cannon suggest about the choice being given to Atahualpa?
  • How does the artist use clothing and posture to show who holds power in this scene?
  • Why might the curators note this scene was 'followed by a massacre' — what does the calm appearance of the image leave out?

This painting is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Atahualpa and Francisco Pizarro on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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Black-and-white ink line drawing with a bold Spanish caption across the top reading Conquista and Atahualpa, Ciudad de Caxamarca. A robed friar with a cross faces a kneeling Inca man, while a crowd of Spanish soldiers with spears and Andean figures fills the scene.Painting

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Pen-and-ink drawing titled 'Conquista', showing Spanish soldiers in armor and helmets with a seated Inca ruler being executed. A bearded, feathered Spanish figure stands at left; a figure with a cross and sword stands center; a headless body lies on the ground below, with a severed head held at right. Caption text at the bottom is in Spanish.Painting

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