The Old Print Shop

Truxillo (View of Trujillo in Honduras).

  • ARTIST: John Ogilby

  • MEDIUM: Copper plate engraving,

    DATE: 1671

  • EDITION SIZE: 10 3/4 x 13 1/4" (27.3 x 34.9 cm) plus wide margins.

  • DESCRIPTION: Trujillo or Truxillo was first founded in 1525 and remained the colonial capital of Honduras for over twelve years. It was used as the principal trade port for gold and silver mined from the Interior and bound for Spain. Like Campeche, Trujillo was a favorite target for pirates and the city was repeatedly attacked by Morgan and other infamous privateers. As a defense against the pirates, a succession of forts were built to stave off attack, but eventually Dutch pirates sacked and torched the town in 1643, and Trujillo was laid waste for 144 years before resettlement. This view appeared in John Ogilby’s seminal atlas "America: Being the Latest, and Most Accurate Description of the New World," published in London in 1671. Ogilby’s work is an English translation of Arnoldus Montanus’ "Die Nieuwe en onbekende Weereld. . . ," which was produced in Amsterdam earlier the same year. Considered the first encyclopedias of the Americas, both texts are richly illustrated with maps, views, and portraits. With little exception, Ogilby’s work is a direct copy of Montanus’ atlas. Ogilby did expand his atlas by adding fresh material on the English colonies. Illustrated with over 122 magnificent engravings, Ogilby’s America was the most accurate compendium available of the New World.

  • ADDITIONAL INFO:

  • CONDITION: Good condition. Black & white.

  • REFERENCE:

  • CATEGORIES: Maps