"Historia natural y moral de las Indias (vol. 1 of 2)" by José de Acosta is a work first published in Latin in 1589 and in Spanish in 1590. This Jesuit scholar's ambitious treatise divides its seven books between natural and moral subjects. The first four books explore cosmography, biology, botany, and geography of the New World, while the final three delve into religious, political, and historical matters, including ancient Mexican history. The work sparked controversy over its sources and became widely translated across Europe. (This is an automatically generated summary.)