The recovery of 548 ceramic fragments has allowed the reconstruction of the Auto de Fe of Maní.
In 2015, a team from the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) conducted an archaeological rescue during the renovation works in the center of Magical Town of Maní.
In front of the Municipal Palace, in five trenches intended for electrical wiring, hydraulic networks, and tree planting, 548 ceramic fragments were recovered. Archaeologist Tomás Gallareta Negrón explains that nearly 97 percent of this material corresponds to vessels and incense burners, mostly with anthropomorphic representations.
The archaeological supervisor notes that a significant portion of the remains showed signs of exposure to fire. “Coupled with the density of ceramic shards still visible in the excavation profiles, we assumed that they corresponded to the remains of idols, cult images, sacred objects, and codices that were destroyed during the “Auto de Fe of Maní.”
It is essential to remember that the Auto de Fe of Maní, which took place in the town square on July 12, 1562, represents the greatest cultural destruction of the Maya people.
Professor John F. Chuchiak IV from the University of Missouri State explains that the central cause behind the Auto de Fe in Maní was the dispute between secular and religious authorities, particularly the Franciscan order, regarding the organized persecution of traditional Maya religion. This ongoing conflict between the two powers led to other Auto de Fe events in the Yucatán Peninsula, but the one in Maní remains the most impactful.
“The Auto de Fe in Maní represents an unprecedented and unparalleled event in the Yucatán Peninsula. Friar Diego de Landa, the local Franciscan provincial, and others from his order assumed inquisitorial powers and punished the Maya for continuing to worship their gods—an act the Church deemed idolatry,” recalls Chuchiak.
Archaeologist Gallareta Negrón adds that Maní was one of the largest and economically most prosperous towns on the Peninsula. Descendants of rulers from pre-Hispanic sites like Uxmal and Kabah resided there in the Puuc region.
“Maní was one of the major tributaries to the Spanish Crown, and it never fully recovered from the impact of that demonstration,” he details.
At that time, Landa instructed the destruction and burning of over 5,000 idols and other ritual paraphernalia, including 27 Maya codices written on bark paper and deer skin. “This is well-documented through the Auto de Fe process in Maní, which provides details such as the dimensions of the platforms, the number of interpreters and indigenous people prosecuted, and the procession around the convent during the burning. These findings align with archaeological discoveries,” concludes John Chuchiak.
