Matthaeus Merian, “Natives Roasting ‘Dragons’” & “Ambush by Native Women”, 1655

Matthaeus Merian (also known as Matthäus Merian I) (1593–1650), or possibly Theodoor de Bry (aka Théodore de Bry, Dietrich de Bry, and Dirk de Bry) (1528–1598)

Recto (page 219): “Ambush by Native Women”, 1655
The text describes a Spanish encounter with the local inhabitants in their village: “… they came across a place which, like Venice [hence the name Venezuela], was built on the water and wooden piles, it had about twenty dwellings, like the bells of a fortress. From which bridges went so that they could come together in and around. … twelve canoes made from whole trees came towards them [the Spanish] … and brought 16 maidens with them … pretending to be their best friends; a great crowd also swam from their houses to the ships, from which they could still not draw any evil suspicion. …the others also moved further away from the ships, and began to shoot violently at the Spaniards with their bows. … others, who had swum from their houses to the ships, carried their spears hidden under the water, from which their treachery could then be sufficiently inferred.”
The page is titled: “Von Erfindung derselben durch underschiedliche Schiffart” (Of the discovery of the same through different navigation).

Verso (page 220): “Natives Roasting ‘Dragons’”, 1655

For those wondering about the seemingly fantastical depiction of winged-serpents (dragons)—the artist’s creative representations of what we now know are iguanas—bound together in the lower left foreground, the German text explains that the Spaniards investigating the local inhabitants’ culture “found many live snakes … tied at the feet with ropes and their mouths bound with cords, so that they could not harm people, just as one is accustomed to muzzle bears, dogs, horses, and other wild animals. They looked so frightening that the Spaniards did not want to touch them. They make their bread from fish, which they first boil, then pound, and then dry again over the coals. And this bread is good to eat and tastes good.”
The page is titled: “West Indianischer Historien Ander Theil” (Second Part of the West Indian Histories).

Technical Details & Condition:

Etchings on fine laid paper with full margins and German letterpress text on recto and verso. This original book-leaf was published in Frankfurt am Main in 1655 by the Merian heirs within Johann Ludwig Gottfried’s “Newe Welt und Americanische Historien”. The two featured etchings (recto and verso) appear on pages numbered 219, and 220. See: https://archive.org/details/neweweltvndameri00gott/page/218/mode/2up.

The etchings are strong, well-printed impressions, showing no signs of wear to the printing plate. The sheet is in excellent condition—free of tears, holes, folds, abrasions, or significant stains.

Dimensions:

• Sheet: 30.9 x 19.4 cm

Price & Shipping:

AU$251 (approximately US$175.81 / €147.85 / £128.14), including worldwide express shipping. Import duties and taxes are the buyer’s responsibility.

If you are interested in acquiring this historically important and visually compelling sheet of etchings documenting native Americans and Spanish interactions, please contact me at oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com. I am happy to provide a secure PayPal invoice for a seamless purchase.

This print has been sold