Paula Daza places indigenous women on the stage of the colonial patriarchy…
When changes unleashed by the Bourbon reforms weakened the chiefdoms and the indigenous men who were their communities’ chiefs, a space opened up for indigenous women to assume that role in certain places in the Royal Audience of Quito.

Paula Daza follows, step by step, the performance of a number of these female chiefs, the opposition they faced from colonial authorities and their own communities, and the ploys they came up with to remain in that role, ploys very similar to those adopted by their male counterparts.

“Rich in archival evidence, this book provides a critical look at politics and gender in the northern Andes during the 18th century,” states Karen Graubart. According to Luis Miguel Glave, this “is a fascinating, original book that, while not ignoring previous historiography, looks for new and necessary approaches to research on the Colonial Period in the northern Andes.