BOXER CODEX
refer to people who trace their roots to the
 The Boxer Codex is a late sixteenth-century
Spanish manuscript that was produced in the
Philippines.
 The document contains seventy-five colored
illustrations of the peoples of China, the
Philippines, Java, the Moluccas, the
Ladrones, and Siam.
 About 270 pages of Spanish text describe
these places, their inhabitants, and customs.
An additional eighty-eight smaller drawings
show mythological deities and demons, and
both real and mythological birds and animals
copied from popular Chinese texts and books
in circulation at the time.
 The eminent historian, Charles Ralph Boxer,
purchased the manuscript in 1947 from the
collection of Lord Ilchester in London. Boxer
recognized the importance of what he called
the "Manila Manuscript" and published a
paper in 1950 with a detailed description of
the codex.
 He made the manuscript freely available to
other researchers for study and it became
known as the "Boxer Codex" in recognition of
its owner. Eventually, Boxer sold the codex
to Indiana University where it is held by the
Lilly Library.
The Boxer Codex depicts
the Tagalogs, Visayans, Zambals, Cagayanes or
possibly Ibanags, and Negritos of the Philippines in
vivid color. The technique of the paintings, as does
the use of Chinese paper, ink, and paints, suggests
that the unknown artist may have been Chinese.
The Boxer Code depicts… THE BISAYANS
- Visayans (also spelled Bisayans) generally
women consist of some blankets with diverse
Bisayan-speaking region in central
Philippines.
- This region includes the islands of Panay,
Romblon, Guimaras, Negros, Cebu, Bohol,
Siquijor, Leyte, Biliran and Samar. However,
because of migration over time, a large part
of Mindanao (from Zamboanga up to
northern Mindanao and down to Davao and
Cotabato) is now largely populated by
Visayans. Thus, it is not uncommon for
people from Mindanao to call themselves
“Visayan,” especially if they are native
speakers of the Bisaya language.
BISAYANS CULTURE
- The Bisayans are accustomed to paint their
bodies with some elegant tattoos. They do
this with iron or brass rods, the points of
which are heated on fire.
- The women paint only the hands very
elegantly. To the men, these paintings serve
as clothing, and thus they look alright
although they usually go around naked, and
wear nothing on the body except a cotton
cloth two fathorns long or a bit longer, and
three-fourths of a fathorn wide, which with a
few polished turns, they wrap around the
waist and between the legs which they call
bahaque in their tongue.
- They have another type of clothing, which
consists of cotton blankets that they make
into morning wear.
- They mean wear multi-colored head scarfs
which they call purones in their language.
CLOTHING OF THE BISAYANS
- The garments and dresses of Bisayan
colored stripes made of cotton, and others
are made from a plant they have; some wear
plain tafetta and damask that come from
China. These are made as follows: a blanket
is sewn in such a way it becomes like a big
sack of wheat with two openings: the head is
placed through one of opening, folding it
down to the waist with both openings of the
blanket falling below; a slipknot with the
same blanket is made above the waist by
grasping it since it is very wide to be able to
make the knot; it then hugs the body, with the
knot to one side, very elegantly done, and
now it appears as if they were wearing a
dress with two skirts.
- With this they wear a pezuelo, a chemise
with half sleeves that reach the elbows or full
sleeves.
- Many wear a lot of gold jewelry.
- When they go out, they bring a shawl-like
wrap made of white corrom, some of colored
taffeta.
- When the women leave their homes to visit
others, they walk very slowly, making a
thousand movements with their body, with
one sleeved arm upraised, because they
consider it fashionanle to do so. The
menlikewise do so.
- The women wear crowns and garlands on
their heafs made of tinsel imported from
China.
- If not, they wear garlands made of roses and
flowers from the fields.
RELACION DE LAS ISLAS FILIPINAS
- The title literally means Events in the
Philippine Islands and thus the books
primary goal is a documentation of events
during the Spanish colonial period of the
Philippines as observed by the author
himself. The book “Relacion de las Islas
Filipinas” narrates the Civilization of the
Filipino peoples who were still living in
primitive conditions. Includes of their
customs, language, religious beliefs,
manners, traditions and the results of
Spanish influence upon them. Mentioned the
chronicles the life of Filipinos during the time
the Jesuit Missionaries conducted their
religious work in the islands.
FR. PEDRO CHIRINO (1557 – 16 September 1635)
 Spanish priest and historian
 Served as a Jesuit missionary in the
Philippines
 Recorded the transition of Filipino writing
from the Baybayin script to the Latin alphabet
 served in the Philippines for 12 years
FACTS ABOUT RELACION DE LAS ISLAS
FILIPINAS
 The Ortigas Foundation Library has a copy of
"Relación de las Islas Filipinas" by Fr. Pedro
Chirino (1604)
 ORIGINAL TITLE: Relacion de las Islas
Filipinas i de lo que en ellas an trabaiado los
Padres de la Compania de Jesus
 495 pages
 PUBLISHER: Historical Conservation
Society, 1969
JESUIT MISSIONARIES. They set up missions, built
parishes, opened mission schools, administered the
sacraments, and taught children catechism. They
wrote the first grammars and compiled the first
dictionaries in Maguindanao, Tururay, and Bagobo
CLASSES OF SLAVES
 AYUEY
also called “servant” or “follower”
worth of 2 gold Taes of Labin Sian or
12php
 TUMARONPOC
worth the same sum of ayuey
 TUMATABANS/ TOMATABANS
worth one Tae or 6php
RULES OF PUNISHMENT FOR THIEVES
 If a thief commits a great robbery, he and all
his relatives are fined
 if they are unable to pay, they are made
slaves
 Apply to all classes( even chiefs)
RELIGION/ WORSHIPS
 Baylanas offers prayers and sacrifices
(baylanes) to their Gods only in sickness and
war.
 Tagalogs call Bathala Mei Capal ( God the
creator or maker) while the Bisayans call him
Laon which denotes antiquity.
 Idoltary: They call these Larauan which
signifies “idol, image or statue.”
 The tagalogs worshipped the crow called Mei
Lupa, signifies “master of the soil.”
 They made offerings with stones, cliffs, reefs
and headlands of the sea or rivers.
MARRIAGES/ RELATIONSHIPS
 Bisayan women to marry two husbands.
 Bisaya always select women who is equal to
their status while the Tagalogs are satisfied
if the woman’s status is less.
 Betrothal: Formal engagement to be married
 Dowry: Accustomed to purchase women as
their wives.
 Divorce: When divorced, husband and wife
share marriage equally.
FOLKLORE
 is made of two words: folk, which means
regional people, and lore, which means
stories.
 folklore reflects tales shared by locals in a
certain area
 BAYLANAS - is the offering of prayers and
sacrifices of the natives to the gods in case
of sickness, and in times of seed-sowing or
of war.
 BAYLANES - the pagan priestesses, or the
men who perform this office.
 (Men - baylan/katalona ; Women/Priestess -
baylana/babaylana)
 According to Abinales and Amoroso (2005), as
women, babaylans were more likely to be
powerful ritual specialists with the power to
influence the weather, and tap the various spirits
in nature.
 Were held in such high esteem because of their
ability to negate the dark magic of the datus and
heal the sick or the wounded. Among the powers
of the babaylan was to heal the sick, ensure a
 safe pregnancy and child birth, and lead rituals
with offerings to the various divinities.
 Well versed in herb lore, and was able to create
remedies, antidotes, and potions from various
roots and seeds.
PROCESS OF THE RITUAL
- The priestesses dress very gaily, with
garlands on their heads, and are resplendent
with gold
- The priestesses bring to the place of sacrifice
some pitarrillas (a kind of earthen jar) full of
rice-wine, besides a live hog and a quantity
of prepared food.
- The priestess chants her songs and invokes
the demon, who appears to her all glistening
in gold.
GODS and GODDESSES in Visayan Pantheon
 KAPTAN/ CAPTAN
- The supreme god who dwells in the sky.
- Ancient Visayan counterpart of Bathala.
- Most worshipped by the natives.
- Had a son named Lihangin.
 YNAGUINID
- Bisayan goddess of war and poisons.
- Appears as a warrior covered in many
tattoos, symbols of a victor and slayer of
men, her face streaked with blood, her teeth
sharpened like shark teeth and blackened
with coal and herbs.
- Sometimes said to be genderless.
 LIHANGIN
- The god of the wind and the son of Kaptan.
 LINDAGAT
- The goddess of the sea, daughter of
Maguayan.
 BARANGAW
- The god of rainbow and symbol of hope.
 MACANDUC
- The god of war
FACT: Ynaguinid, Macanduc, and Barangaw are the
trinity of war gods invoked before or during battle.
Babaylans and datus pray to these deities to bless
warriors with their might, bravery, and strength.
FOLKLORE (Belief Concerning the World)
 The god Macaptan - Dwells highest in the
sky. They consider him a bad god
 The goddess Lalahon - dwells in a volcano in
Negros island
 Burials - These natives bury their dead in
certain wooden coffins, in their own houses
with the dead gold, cloth, and other valuable
objects
CONCLUSION. The Jesuits played an essential role
for the natives. Aimed at producing and protecting
good native citizens. It was meant to be didactic and
informative, useful to the government of the
Philippines as lux veritatis, vita memoriae, magistra
vitae (the light of truth, the life of memory, the teacher
of life). Pedro Chirino's work is an excellent
contribution to ethnographic, botanical, and
missionary knowledge. Chirino’s overemphasis of
miraculous baptisms and the long-standing appeal of
the Jesuits in the Philippines for the establishment of
the Philippine vice-province into a full-fledged
province of the Society of Jesus, that will facilitate
their greater autonomy and control over the
management of their mission areas in the Philippines.
FIRST VOYAGE AROUND THE WORLD
First Voyage Around the World
● Is an accurate ethnographic and
geographical account of Ferdinand
Magellan’s circumnavigation of the world
● A journal written by Antonio Pigafetta dating
from around 1525
● Four manuscript accounts of the voyage are
extant—two French versions at the
Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris; an Italian
version, considered by many scholars to be
the oldest and most complete of the existing
manuscripts, at the Biblioteca Ambrosiana in
Milan; and a third French version, usually
referred to as the Nancy Manuscript, now at
Yale University. (None of the extant
manuscripts is the original version written by
Pigafetta, which is believed to be lost.)
ANTONIO PIGAFETTA
● 1491 - 1531
● Pigafetta was born into a wealthy Vicenza
family, and studied navigation among other
things. He served on board the galleys of the
Knights of Rhodes, and accompanied the
papal nuncio, Monsignor Chieregati, to
Spain. Later, he joined the Portuguese
captain Ferdinand Magellan and his Spanish
crew on their trip to the Maluku Islands. While
in the Philippines Magellan was killed, and
Pigafetta was injured. Nevertheless, he
recovered and was among only 18 of
Magellan’s original crew who, having
completed the first circumnavigation of the
world, returned to Spain on board another
vessel, the Victoria. Most importantly,
Pigafetta kept a journal of his voyage, and
 this is a key source for information about
Magellan’s famous journey.
Context (Spice trade)
● During the Middle Ages, spices were as
valuable in Europe as gold and gems
and the single most important force
driving the world’s economy. The lack of
refrigeration and poor standards of
hygiene meant that food often spoiled
quickly and spices were in great demand
to mask the flavor of food that was far
from fresh. Fierce competition among
European nations for control of the spice
trade was the driving force behind the
colonization of India and other Asian
lands.
● Since spices could not be cultivated in
cold and arid Europe, no effort was
spared to discover the quickest sea route
to the Spice Islands (Moluccas). Portugal
and Spain led the competition for early
control over this critical commodity.
Europeans had reached the Spice
Islands by sailing east, but none had yet
to sail west from Europe to reach the
other side of the globe. Magellan was
determined to be the first to do so.
Annotations of the excerpt (perspective of Pigafetta)
I. First Contact
● On March 16, 1521, Magellan and his crew
sighted the island of Samar (Zamar as
described by Pigafetta) after departing from
the island of Ladroni (present-day Guam)
making them the first Europeans to arrive in
the “Philippines”.
● They landed the following day on the island
of Humunu (present-day Homonhon), an
island in the province of Eastern Samar,
which they thought was uninhabited.
● Two days after their arrival on the
archipelago, they made their first contact with
the natives when they saw an approaching
boat with nine men aboard. These men
displayed hospitality towards the foreigners
“as they gave signs of joy because of their
arrival” and engaged in an exchange of
goods as a sign of diplomacy. The men later
told the foreigners that they came from the
small island of Zaluan.
● The expedition called the island (Humunu)
“Acquada da li buoni Segnialli” (the
Watering-place of Good Signs) because of
the presence of two clear springs and the first
signs of gold. They initially called the island
group “the archipelago of St. Lazaro” for it
was discovered on the Sabbath of St.
Lazarus, a major deviation from the
archipelago’s present name.
II. The First Mass and the Introduction of
Christianity
● The expedition landed on the island of
Mazaua (now called Limasawa located at the
province of Southern Leyte) and met Rajah
Colambu (Kolambu), the local chieftain of the
island, along with Rajah Siawi, the chieftain
of the Rajahnate of Butuan and Calagan
(present-day Surigao). Pigafetta’s accounts
described the rajahs as ornately adorned and
were full of tattoos.
● On March 31, 1521, the first mass in the
Philippines was held on the island of
Limasawa which converted the two rajahs
and the populace of the island to Christianity.
● On the 7th of April 2021, the expedition
landed on the port of Cebu where they met
the ruler, Rajah Humabon. They managed to
convince Rajah Humabon to become a
vassal of the King of Spain and converted
him to Christianity along with his wife Hara
Amihan and the populace of the island. The
former was baptized with the Christian name
Don Carlos and the latter as Juana.
III. The Battle of Mactan and The Death of
Magellan
● Magellan got involved in the conflict between
Zula and Lapu-lapu because the latter
refused to acknowledge the King of Spain
and rejected the conversion to Christianity.
● On April 27, 1521, expeditionary forces,
together with allied natives, decided to attack
the local populace of Mactan. Magellan gave
the islanders an ultimatum to surrender to the
King of Spain or be slain in battle. The
natives replied with hostility to the ultimatum.
● The attackers miscalculated the offensive
because they, adorned with heavy armor,
were not able to disembark on land due to
rocks. This gave time for the natives to form
into strategically placed ranks.
● The attackers’ missiles were completely
negated by the natives which forced hand-to-
hand combat. The natives also retaliated by
hurling spears and arrows which were
completely deflected by the attackers’ heavy
armor.
● Magellan ordered some of his men to burn
the natives’ houses down with the intent to
demoralize them, but the natives used this
tactic to increase their morale which made
their defense stronger.
● The attackers were completely outnumbered
and Magellan was shot in the leg with a
poisoned arrow. Fighting continued on the
shore. Magellan, after sustaining grave
injuries on the leg and arms, was gutted
down by the natives. Magellan was killed by
the natives forcing the attackers to retreat
 with the natives being successful on their
objective.
a. Perspective of the Natives
Why did the native Filipino chieftains readily
accept or accommodate Ferdinand Magellan and
his men? Because they were much accustomed to
receiving and welcoming foreigners like the Chinese,
Arab, and Indian traders. During the precolonial
period, many merchants and traders already went to
the Philippines because of its strategic location in the
Pacific Ocean.
i. Lapu-lapu. Most historical accounts of Datu
Lapulapu state that he is from the neighboring
island of Borneo and has reached the shores of
Sugbo (Cebu) where Rajah Humabon ruled and
was recognized as King. Aside from being a
Filipino hero and symbol of bravery, there are
still many facts about Datu Lapulapu and the
Battle of Mactan known through extensive
research which are worth noting.
- According to a folk epic taken from the oral
histories of the region called the Aginid,
Bayok sa atong Tawarik, when Lapulapu
arrived from Borneo (Sabah), he asked
Rajah Humabon for an area he and his
people could settle in. Humabon then offered
them a place to stay in Mandawili (Mandaue),
which included the island known as Opong
(Opon).
- Lapulapu soon after became the chief of the
region’s people and was called Datu for his
brave battles with pirates. Later on,
Lapulapu’s people helped enhance the trade
of Sugbo when they cultivated the land in his
region. After the Battle of Mactan, the Aginid
says that Lapulapu decided to return to
Borneo with all his children, wives, and some
of his men.
- Datu Lapulapu is also known for many
names like Çilapulapu, Si Lapulapu, Cali
Pulaco, Lapulapu Dimantag and as a Muslim
Iranun Chieftain also known as Kaliph (Salip)
Pulaka. According to one account, there are
various names for Lapulapu because of
wrong translations by different writers. While
historians and writers seem to have different
versions of his name, Lapulapu was
described as a brave warrior and intelligent
leader.
ii. The Power Struggle of Rajah Humabon and
Lapu-lapu
- According to the Aginid Chronicles (oral
chronicles from Rajah Tupas of Cebu), it was
Humabon himself who provoked the
Spaniards into fighting against Lapu-Lapu
and his army.
- Humabon complained to Magellan about a
ruler from nearby Mactan Island by the name
of Lapu-Lapu since Mactan’s location
allowed its ruler to control surrounding
waters, giving Lapu-Lapu power to control
trade coming in and out of Cebu. This, along
with Lapu-Lapu’s reputation as a fearless
fighter allowed him to assert dominance over
Humabon.
- Humabon was looking for a way to cut Lapu-
Lapu’s power and saw that Magellan could
help. It was Humabon who insisted Magellan
fight Lapu-Lapu and his army.
- Magellan’s men advised him not to interfere
in local affairs, but he didn’t listen and
decided to fight Lapu-Lapu with 60 men and
three longboats.
Additional Information about the Journey
- The name of the Spanish fleet led by
Ferdinand Magellan was called Armada de
Molucca
- Included 5 ships which are the Trinidad, the
San Antonio, the Conception, the Santiago,
and the Victoria
- The ships were provided by King Charles V
- Throughout the expedition, there served a
translator named Enrique
- Enrique was from Sumatra (Singapore) and
was a slave of Ferdinand Magellan. Magellan
acquired Enrique as a slave at Malacca
- On April 15, 1521 (originally April 14),
Pigafetta showed the queen, Hara humamay
the wife of Rajah Humabon, a very beautiful
wooden child Jesus, and a cross.
- She asked for the little child Jesus to keep in
place of her idols and this image of child
Jesus is now known as the Sto. Nino found
in Cebu
- Since Magellan and his crew crossed the
international dateline, there is one day added
to the original dates that Antonio Pigafetta
wrote in his book for the better perspective of
us Filipinos
- The first voyage around the world by Antonio
Pigafetta was written on board one of the 5
ships that were first to circumnavigate the
world during an expedition that was led by
the Portuguese explorer, Ferdinand
Magellan, and after his death during the
voyage, it was led by Juan Sebastian Elcano.