(PERU) Detailed audit of the Caja de los Granos the taxes pa

Sale 2473 - Lot 316

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(PERU.) Detailed audit of the Caja de los Granos, the taxes paid on forced labor in the mines. [1], 74 manuscript leaves including title page reading "Quaderno de las quentas de la caxa de los granos." Folio, 12 1/4 x 8 1/2 inches, disbound; moderate dampstaining, the first 10 leaves defective with substantial loss of text, minor wear to the remainder. Lima and Castrovirreyna, Peru, 12 September 1596 to 24 December 1600

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The Caja de los Granos was a treasury account--and a pair of actual strongboxes. It was used to withhold taxes from the wages of Indians forced to labor in the silver mines. The money was intended to finance projects for the workers' welfare, such as inspectors and hospitals. Offered here is the original audit of the Caja de los Granos held in Castrovirreyna district when longtime accountant Juan Fernandez de Castro was replaced by Juan de Sandoval y Guzman. Disturbing irregularities were found. Workers were apparently being paid less, and taxed higher, than the proper amount, and some large bars of silver were withdrawn without explanation. Sandoval accused Fernandez of "siniestra relacion" (misleading statements) on page 49 recto. Included in this packet are the appointments of both accountants; an inventory of the chest's contents; arguments and appeals; depositions by miners; and final arguments. The new viceroy, Luis de Velasco (1534-1617), who had instigated the personnel change, offers his signed rulings in five places, with an additional rubric at the end. A more detailed description is available upon request. For more on the Caja de los Granos, see Bakewell, Miners of the Red Mountain, pages 170-173. Provenance: sold by the William Reese Company to the consignor, July 1992.