Decadent Wealth, Degenerate Morality, Dominance, and Devotion: the Discordant Iconicity of the Rich Mountain of Potosí
Decadent Wealth, Degenerate Morality, Dominance, and Devotion: The Discordant Iconicity of the Rich Mountain of Potosí Dissertation Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Claudia A. Cornejo Happel, M.A. Graduate Program in Spanish and Portuguese The Ohio State University 2014 Dissertation Committee: Lisa Voigt, Advisor Lúcia Costigán Elizabeth Davis Copyright by Claudia A. Cornejo Happel 2014 Abstract The rich mountain of Potosí, with its famed silver mines, has commanded the attention of Europeans, creoles (Americans of Spanish descent), and indigenous Andeans since the Spanish colonizers of Peru were made aware of its existence in 1545. Soon after its discovery, the rich mountain was represented in a variety of written and visual texts created by writers and artists from the Andes, Spain, and other parts of Europe. Independent of its physical form, in these representations the rich mountain assumed a discursive meaning, functioning as an icon that, depending on the context, represented abstract ideas of wealth, immorality, dominance, and spirituality. This dissertation brings together texts, images, and maps to discuss the multifaceted iconicity of Potosí and its cultural salience in these representations. Besides functioning as an icon that supported Spain’s “official history,” a discourse that presented Spanish achievements as heroic and providential, other representations of the rich mountain supported alternative discourses regarding Spanish colonial history. To advance individual and nationalistic agendas, authors, artists, and mapmakers strove to control the meaning associated with the iconic rich mountain. My dissertation shows that for an early modern audience the mountain of Potosí was more than just a source of silver; it was also an icon that contributed to discourses negotiating issues of economy, morality, spatial and political dominance, and spiritual expression.
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