The famous sixteenth-century illustrated manuscript Historia by Fray Diego Durán is an extensive account of Aztec/Mexica history and rites, and a description of the Aztec calendar. Although the exact date of completion is unknown, there are two internal dates in the text (1579 and 1581) which have been used to date the original document. Durán's account was recopied by Mexican scholar José F. Ramírez in 1854 and a two volume printed version with the title Historia de Nueva España y Yslas de Tierra Firme was published in Mexico between 1867 and 1880. Recently a manuscript copy of Durán's text, transcribed in the 1840s, was rediscovered at the Library of Congress containing the following title and description:
Historia antigua de la Nueva España con noticias de los ritos y costumbres de los Yndios y esplicacion del calendario mexicano por Fray Diego Durán, Escrita en el año de 1585. [Peter Force Papers, Series VIII C (Hispanic Collection), Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington].