New Mexico
The first Spaniards to arrive in New Mexico were led by Francisco Vázquez de Coronado in 1540. The fictional Delgado family portrayed in DAUGHTER OF THE WEEDS arrived in the late 1600s after the Pueblo Revolt. The story takes place in 2022, hundreds of years later.
Although New Mexico was geographically removed from Spain, the purity of your bloodline mattered. Casta determined everything, including who you could marry, how much you paid in taxes, and whether you paid taxes at all. The photo on the far right shows a single panel of the levels of casta recognized by the King of Spain. The full panel shows 54 casta levels. The number of levels recognized depended on location, population composition, and distance from Spain.
The main character in the novel, Genna Delgado, can trace her family history for hundreds of years because the Catholic church maintains detailed records of births and deaths.
The fictional village of Dos Pies recognized three levels—Españole, Anglo, and Nativo.
Early New Mexico had a Black population. One of the first to arrive was a slave, Estevanico, bought by Antonio de Mendoza, the first Viceroy of New Spain. Estevanico accompanied Fray Marcos de Niza on his journey to the north, to what is now New Mexico.
This is a single panel from an 18th-century painting of La Casta in the National Museum of Mexico. The complete painting shows 54 categories of La Casta. The number of levels of status recognized varied depending on geography and the population.
Places that inspire
Red rocks of the Jemez Canyon as seen on the way to the fictional town of Dos Pies.
Horno oven outside Tia Bianca’s casita.
Jemez Mountains burn scar as seen on the drive to the fictional town of Dos Pies.
The Chapel of the Monastery of Christ in the High Desert, where Tía Bianca and María retreat for safety.
The yellow cliffs of Tierra Amarilla near the county detention center.
Soda Damn in the Jemez Canyon, inspiration for the fictional waterfall Ojo de Dios.
