HISTORY OF THE SPANISH CONQUEST OF YUCATAN AND OF THE ITZAS

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1. Yucatan does not appear on any map prior to 1523-1525. From the time
of its first discovery Yucatan was believed to be an island. Maps vary
greatly as to what sort of an island it was.

2. In 1527 the Weimar-Spanish map shows Yucatan for the first time as a
peninsula. Probably the maker of this map derived his information from
someone who had been with Cortes in 1524-1525. The name Ytza appears on
the isthmus; it is so faint as to be almost illegible, but I think I
have deciphered it correctly.

3. From 1529 (Ribero) to 1548 (Venice "Ptolemy") geographical knowledge
of Yucatan falls off badly. With only two exceptions (Mercator, 1536,
and Santa Cruz, 1542) the maps of this period show Yucatan as an island
more or less remote from the mainland. I think that the comparative
accuracy of Alonso de Santa Cruz is accounted for by the fact that he
was official cartographer to the crown of Castile and that he had
official information of Montejo's explorations, 1526-1541.