Orphans and abandoned artisans: Peru xvi-xvii centuries

Historiography is increasingly studying orphans and craft activities issues (separately though) during the colonial period in Peru, but so far it has not given importance to many of the craftsmen and apprentices appearing in documents files as orphans. The Spanish Crown tried to take care of European, mestizos and Indian orphans, making sure they had a job so in the future they could fend for themselves. Various types of documents allowed us to study the situation of orphanhood and helplessness, although its content has not always been clear about the individual's real situation, which has forced us to be very cautious about the information obtained. This research is a first step towards the study of Peru's orphan artisans at the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.