This online exhibit and bibliography is a collaborative project of Tarlton Law Library and the Benson Latin American Collection at The University of Texas. A detailed overview of Aztec and Maya law as it existed at the time of the Spanish conquest of Mesoamerica is supplemented by an annotated bibliography of resources on Mexican legal history, Aztec and Maya law, and related works on Aztec and Maya history, archaeology, and cultural studies. To limit the scope of the exhibit and the bibliography, the sections on Maya law will principally focus on the Maya who inhabited what is now the country of Mexico. In following the preferred terminology of Mayanist scholars, "Maya" will be the standard term used to refer to the Maya people and their legal system. The term "Mayan" will refer solely to the diverse group of languages spoken by the Maya people.

Banner Image Information: Prisoners of war being brought before the Maya ruler of Bonampak and his court. Murals of Bonampak (Miller).