De los antepasados valientes a los paganos del norte. Los chichimecas y sus imágenes a través de la época colonial, in: Códices del centro de México. Análisis comparativos y estudios individuales, J.J. Batalla Rosado, M.A. Ruz eds., AL University of Warsaw, Warsaw 2013, p. 13-42

The focus of this paper is the native concept of chichimecayotl, studied through pictorial and written evidence. Images of nomad ancestors, founders of altepetl and their descendants display Chichimec traitsthat are important in the iconography of rank of pre-Hispanic and postcontact native nobility; these attributes reveal a constant tension between humble and prestigious connotations. A significant aspect of thisanalysis is the transformation of the Chichimec tradition across the sixteenth century under the impact of European concepts; another essential factor was the outbreak of a violent and prolonged war with pagan inhabitants of the northern regions. It is argued that pictorial images of "contemporary" Chichimecs mirror conceptualizations expressed in verbal language recorded in Nahuatl and Spanish sources. However, despite the profound changes that the term chichimecatl underwent, native communities continued to view the arrival of the founders as a source of prestige and legitimacy through the late colonial period.