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De Bry - " How the Aztecs hunt game" 1601 - Acosta - Aztec - Mexico
De Bry - " How the Aztecs hunt game" 1601 - Acosta - Aztec - Mexico
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"How the Aztecs hunt game"
-Original Copperplate Engraving
-Theodore De Bry
-Page 9.5 x 13 inches (23 x 33cm)
-Image 8.5 x 6 inches (22 x 15cm)
-1602 (This image is from the Latin 1st Edition)
-Good condition - some mild toning and marks to page.
-Verso blank
-More recent colour
This is an original plate from Part 9 of De Bry's famous set of "Grands Voyages". This part contained an early translation of Acosta's famous "Historia natural y moral de las Indias", first published in Salamanca in 1589. The work was divided into seven parts, the parts I-IV of which described the flora, fauna and geography of the area. Books V-VII contained information on the religion, politics and history of Mexico.
This is plate 6 from the series, depicting how Aztecs hunt game
The text for the plate reads:
"At dawn, hunters would gather together in the town, accompanied with their bows, arrows and netting for hunting purposes. They would then march out of town, blowing their horns and carrying an idol to the top of a hill where they would place it on an altar with great ceremony. Round the base of this hill, they would place netting, then light fires. The fire would frighten deer, foxes and hares so that, when they tried to escape, they became trapped in the netting where they were. The Aztecs would then shot the animals or capture them"