Ercilla y Zuñiga, Alonso de
La Araucana1733 - Amongst the earliest references to the Araucanians of Chili. 1733. Madrid. Francisco Martinez Abad. In folio (298 mm x 204 mm). 1 [blank] + 8 ff. + 186 + 9 ff. + 4 ff. + 167 + 5 ff. Contemporary mottled calf, hinges starting and exposed, raised bands to spine, tooled in gilt, lettering piece, head of spine chipped. A fresh and clean copy overall. Considered the first complete edition of all five parts of this classic poem. The work is based on first-hand experience with the Araucanians of Chili under the expedition lead by Garcia Hurtado de Mendoza (1535  1609), Governor of Chile and later Viceroy of Peru, which took place from 1555 to 1562, and thus, amongst the earliest references on the Chilean natives. In this poem, Ercilla criticises and consistently attacks Hurtado de Mendoza in regards to the force and brutality employed in the conquest of the native nation. Without doubt one of the great heroic poems of Spain and amongst the earliest on America, considered by Voltaire as comparable to the work of Virgil, Tasso and Camoens. Titles printed in red and black within typographical borders. Ercilla y Zuñiga was born in 1533, in 1555 he accompanied Alderete to the Americas; in 1557 he arrived in Chile, where he joined the expedition of to expand the frontiers of Chile to the South, accompanying the famous Hurtado de Mendoza. Provenance: armorial bookplate James Vivian Jippet. Palau, 80424. Sabin, 22729. [Attributes: Hard Cover]
[Bookseller: HS Rare Books]