A woodcut plan of Tenochtitlan before the Spanish conquest of Mexico City

An early plan of the Aztec city of Tenochtitlan, as recorded by the expedition of Hernan Cortés, prior to the Spanish sacking of the city in 1521. It shows a large and well organised city on an island in the middle of Lake Texcoco. It was included in the 'Libro di Benedetto Bordone', better known as his 'Isolario', probably because the canals and bridges reminded the author of his home city of Venice. The first edition of the Isolario was in 1528, only seven years after the sacking. Despite the six editions between 1528-1562 these maps seldom appear on the market.