The Unpublished Manuscript of Alcalá: Chronicle of the Jesuit Jerónimo Xavier on the Prodigies of an Ape at the Court of Emperor Jahangir

The missionary Jerome Xavier, as well as English diplomats accredited to Emperor Jahangir, spread a festive, yet intriguing story about the divinatory qualities of a Bengali ape who always selected the religion of Christ. This episode of entertainment generated more notoriety in Europe than in India, being interpreted as a miraculous action or as an illusionist’s trick. The Archives of Alcalá (AESI-E) keeps a copy of the handwritten letter sent by Fr. Xavier to Visitor Pimenta, a letter that recounts the details of the event. This article aims to contextualize the circumstances and perceptions generated by the news and then compare them with the English ones.