ABSTRACT
This chapter demonstrates that the imagery of Jerusalem directly influenced the way in which the conquistadors approached the New World. This imagery had already exerted an influence in Europe during the Crusades, the Middle Ages and the European Renaissance. For the purpose of the Counter-Reformation, it was used in the onial territory in architecture, literature and the arts to visualize ideal models based on the City of Jerusalem metaphor. The chapter examines the writings of chroniclers such as The Book of Prophecies by Christopher Columbus, the Natural and Moral History of the Indies by Jos de Acosta and, among others, the text by Miguel Snchez entitled Image of the Virgin Mary, Mother of Guadalupe. Villalpando's reconstruction of Solomon's temple aims to visualize one of the most important metaphors that has survived over two millennia. The objective is to visualize the idea and imagery of Jerusalem in a concrete construction.
