Reimagining the Codex Tezcatlipoca (Fejérváry-Mayer): A Transdisciplinary Approach to Decolonizing Mesoamerican Cultural Heritage

Abstract: This presentation delves into the Codex Tezcatlipoca (Fejérváry-Mayer) from the World Museum, Liverpool. Applying the Mesoamerican Futures framework, this paper explores decolonial theory, digital heritage and speculative methods to reinterpret the Codex's cultural significance to its source and diasporic communities. Critical museology is applied to recontextualize the Codex within a decolonising indigenous framework. Collaborative research across Puebla, Oaxaca, Tlaxcala, Mexico City, and Liverpool informs this study. The presentation highlights the diverse perspectives on the Codex Fejérváry-Mayer’s digital heritage, potential renaming, and speculated repatriation.

Presenter bio: José Sherwood González, PhD researcher at Manchester Metropolitan University, specializes in Mesoamerican studies and decolonial theory. Blending his British-Mexican heritage, José employs innovative methodologies in visual anthropology and digital media. Supported by an AHRC scholarship, his work focuses on reimagining the Codex Fejérváry-Mayer, currently held in the World Musuem, Liverpool.

Affiliation: School of Digital Arts, Manchester Metropolitan University