Selections from Peter Martyr

The first decade, or volume, of Peter Martyr's reports on the New World, published in 1511 as De Orbe Novo, was in fact the first European history of America. For twenty years after Columbus's voyages of discovery, Martyr's letters; in various versions, served as Europe's primary printed source for the Caribbean and the emerging continent of South America. Martyr, a wise observer and great storyteller, is one of the major informants on the voyages of Columbus. His work also includes the whole of the first decade of the De Orbe Novo and the fourth book of Martyr's third decade, which tells of Columbus's voyage to Panama. A new and accurate translation parallels the Latin text, while Eatough's extensive commentary contributes significantly to the remarkably detailed, complex and varied series of narratives.