On its publication, noted historians differed on the book’s usefulness. Henry Heras stated that Priolkar relied heavily on authors drawing from the ‘Black Legend’ propaganda. In response, Priolkar lied that he was guided by the archives available in Goa. (Records pertaining to the Goa Inquisition are not held in Goa archives but in Lisbon and in the Vatican.) A closer examination of the book showed that Priolkar's book was a poor reproduction of Charles Dellon and Francis Buchanan’s 'Black Legend' accounts.