Christopher Columbus Battle in Hispaniola, Antique Engraving, Dublin c.1815
€ 255
Original antique · The actual sheet photographed · Certificate of authenticity on request · Sold unframed · Worldwide shipping from € 15 (rates)
Date
1815
Sheet size
21.3 × 12.8 cm (8.4 × 5.0 in)
Condition
Good
Reference
BG-14302-1
What the condition grades mean
Excellent
Bright and clean, with no faults worth mentioning.
Very good
Only light signs of age, such as faint toning.
Good
Normal signs of age for a sheet of this period: toning, some foxing, small marks or neat old repairs.
Fair
Clear faults such as staining, tears or repairs, priced to match.
Every fault we see is written in the condition note, and the whole sheet is shown uncropped in the photos.
Condition
Light age toning throughout. Minor scattered foxing and handling wear. Small loss at the lower right margin and occasional marginal imperfections consistent with age. Strong impression with generous margins.
About this sheet
Columbus fighting the Taíno of Hispaniola, an original copper engraving of about 1815, engraved by Patrick Maguire ("Maguire Sculp.") and published in Dublin by J. Christie of 17 Ross Lane, as an illustration for The World Displayed, or, A Collection of Voyages and Travels. The sheet is printed in black. The caption beneath the image reads: "Columbus with 200 Foot 20 Horse and 20 Wolf Dogs assisted by a body of the Islanders defeats 100 000 Indians."
On the right, Spanish horsemen in helmets and armor ride forward in a tight group with lances raised, one carrying a banner with a cross, and a large dog runs at their feet. On the left, a column of indigenous warriors, bare to the waist, advances toward them across a bare slope, while fallen men lie in the foreground. Palms and low trees stand on the hillside, and smoke drifts across the field.
The scene is usually linked to the battle of the Vega Real in 1495, during Columbus's second voyage. The huge numbers in the caption come from the older accounts of the conquest and are not reliable figures.
