Antonio de Herrera y Tordesillas was the official chronicler of the Spanish possessions in the Indies. His most important work, Historia General…, begins with the history of the voyages of Columbus and includes events in America up to 1554, with the suppression of the revolt of Francisco Hernandez Giron in Peru. The title page includes portraits of famous explorers and soldiers and small views and maps of important events and battles. In the upper left corner is a portrait of Cortez with a map of Mexico City. Next to it is Magellan with a map of his expedition entering the strait that now bears his name. At bottom left is another map of Mexico City with a portrait of Cristobal de Olid, a conquistador who played a part in the conquest of Mexico and later led a rebellion in Honduras. At bottom right is a portrait of Gonzalo de Sandoval, the youngest of the Cortez' lieutenants, superimposed over an interesting scene representing the dispute between Spain and Portugal over the division of the New World.

References:

Condition: B+

A nice impression with some printer's ink residue and light toning. The engraved image has been trimmed to neatline and attached to a sheet of old paper with some damp stains along the left edge of the sheet.