Compendio de la Vida, y Virtudes de la Venerable Catharina de San Juan

Puebla: Imprenta de Francisco de Leon, 1692. Fair.. viii [of xii],138 [of 143]pp. Small quarto. Lacking title page, supplied in manuscript, as well as the second and final five leaves. Contemporary vellum, manuscript spine title, marcas de fuego on top and bottom edges. Text block unattached. Minor soiling to vellum. Moderate insect damage to initial leaves and some additional worming throughout, affecting top lines of text. Worlds collide in the story of Catarina de San Juan, reportedly abducted from South Asia and sold into slavery by the Portuguese, she eventually found her way to Mexico and the church. Catarina's original name was said to have been Mirra, and she is also known as China Poblana, because of her ethnic origins. The legends that come down to us are derived almost exclusively from hagiographies like the present work, one of three published after her death. Catarina is also credited with creating the China Poblana style of dress, consisting of an embroidered blouse, skirt, slip, shawl, and kerchief, a look adopted by denizens of Puebla was modeled on the South Asian sari or langa voni that Catarina brought to Mexico in the 17th century. The present example lacks the title page (supplied in manuscript facsimile), plus the second and final five leaves, and shows signs of biopredation to the extant leaves, somewhat affecting the top lines of text. A wounded copy, priced accordingly, but quite rare -- OCLC locates only two copies in U.S. libraries, at Harvard and Indiana. We also trace one other copy at auction, which sold at Swann for $11,250 in 2023.