Aztec codex returns to Mexico on loan
Aztec document goes on display in Mexico after 186 years abroad
Thursday, 17 September 2026
Warm-up
- What famous museum object would you like to see and why?
- Should countries return old artefacts taken long ago? Why or why not?
- How can pictures tell history without words?
Vocabulary
- manuscript
- A handwritten document, usually old and valuable.
- codex
- An ancient book made of pages, not a scroll.
- pictogram
- A simple picture used to show an idea or story.
- conquistador
- A Spanish soldier who took part in the conquest of the Americas.
- migration
- The movement of a group of people to a new place.
- ancestral
- Related to the people from whom one’s family came long ago.
- counterpart
- A person with the same position in another country or organisation.
- repatriate
- To return something or someone to their home country.
Reading
A centuries-old manuscript that tells the story of the Aztecs is on display in Mexico after 186 years abroad. The Codex Azcatitlán, drawn in the 16th Century, uses pictograms to show Aztec history, including battles against Spanish conquistadors and the fall of their empire. It has been held at France’s Bibliothèque Nationale since 1898, after spending earlier decades outside Mexico.
France has lent the codex to mark 200 years of Franco‑Mexican relations. In return, Mexico will lend the Codex Boturini, which shows the Aztecs’ migration from their ancestral homeland to Lake Texcoco, where they built Tenochtitlán. The exchange was agreed by Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and her French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, during his visit last year.
Mexico has long campaigned to have artefacts repatriated. According to its foreign ministry, more than 2,000 objects were returned last year. The Codex Azcatitlán will be exhibited at the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City from Thursday.
Comprehension
- What item is going on display in Mexico, and what does it show?
- How many years has the codex been outside Mexico before this display?
- Which leaders agreed the temporary exchange of the two codices?
- What document will Mexico lend to France in return?
- Where will the Codex Azcatitlán be exhibited, and from when?
Grammar focus
Future perfect
The future perfect uses will have + past participle to say an action will be finished before a specific future time. It shows completion by that time. (Examples constructed.)
- By Thursday, **the codex will have arrived**.
- By the end of the year, **the exchange will have started**.
Grammar exercise
Complete each sentence using the future perfect.
- By the time the exhibition opens, staff (finish) ___ displays.
- By Thursday the museum (prepare) ___ the gallery for visitors.
- By next month, both countries (complete) ___ the exchange.
- By then, over 2,000 objects (be) ___ repatriated.
- Before visitors arrive, the codex (install) ___ in its case.
Discussion
- Should museums loan or permanently return foreign-held artefacts?
- What are the pros and cons of pictograms for telling history?
- How do international cultural exchanges help the public?
- What rules should guide repatriation of historical objects?
Vocabulary, reading, and exercises with instant feedback