Juan de Lizarraga's Coat of Arms

Among the documentation that individuals were required to submit to the House of Trade to obtain their license for travel to the Indies was a Certificate of Blood Purity. Although there would be various brief periods of relative tolerance, generally speaking, certain groups were prohibited from emigrating to the Americas. Passengers therefore had to provide documents to prove that they did not belong to any of these groups, with accurate information showing, for example, how long their family had been part of the Christian faith.

It was also common for relatives, servants, and other accompanying travelers to be listed in the passenger information and licenses, in addition to the main traveler, since it was also necessary for these people to show that they fell into the category of Old Christians. This image shows Juan de Lizarraga's coat of arms. He was a servant listed in Pablo de Contreras' record, and it was used to demonstrate his purity, lineage, and nobility.