De Bry - Latin America - Slaves process sugar cane and make sugar

De Bry - Latin America - Slaves process sugar cane and make sugar
This significant, historic engraving is from Theodor de Bry, Thomas Hariot, and John White's Admiranda narratio fida tamen, de commodis et incolarum ritibus Virginiae, ... Anglico scripta sermone a Thoma Hariot. It is the first part or volume of Grands Voyages which is considered one of the most remarkable collections of voyages published in the Age of Discovery. The work was published in Frankfurt by Johann Wechel for Theodor de Bry and Sigismund Feirabend. The work began publishing in 1590 with this volume printed near 1608. It is the second Latin edition.

The work illustrated the first eye-witness pictorial record of the American Southeast. It is the first illustrated account wholly dedicated to any portion of the United States. This was the first part of Theodor de Bry's Great Voyages or Grands Voyages. It is from the rarest part of the series.

Thomas Hariot wrote the text for the work with the first description of Virginia and North Carolina. John White was the artist and also part of the Roanoke expedition where he wrote his account from direct observation. White also served as the lieutenant-governor of the colony. He was a skilled artist and these images from him are some of the most famous early American illustrations. Theodor de Bry expertly created the engravings from the illustrations.

Theodor de Bry (1528-1598) was a prominent Flemish engraver and publisher. He came from a family of jewelers and engravers, and faced persecution for his Lutheran faith during the Spanish Inquisition. De Bry would be most known for his engravings of the New World from Grands Voyages, a work which would reach 30 volumes in scope. He was inspired to create this work after meeting Richard Hakluyt in 1587, who had published his own collection of voyages.

De Bry's landmark work depicted the early voyages and settlements in the Americas. His work greatly influenced the European view of the Americas for a long period of time. De Bry's prints provide an important contemporary view of European conquest and settlement in early America. The images depict native customs, culture and warfare, and episodes in the history of European contact with these natives and their world. As Michael Alexander said, De Bry's work "brought to the European public the first realistic visualization of the exotic world opened up across the Atlantic by the explorers, conquerors and settlers." (Discovering the New World, p. 7)

The work is in good to very good condition overall. There may be some wear or chipping at the edges, mostly the lower edge. There may be occasional worm marks to the paper. There may be a few minor imperfections or faint fox marks to be expected with age. Please review the image carefully for condition and contact us with any questions.
~ 9" by 13 1/4"