Columbus’ First Voyage: Latin Selections from Peter Martyr’s De Orbe Novo

Five selections in Latin from Peter Martyr of Angleria’s De Orbe Novo are presented with vocabulary help on the facing page. After each Latin selection, background notes including information from other primary sources (Columbus’ own 1493 letter, the abstraction of Columbus’ journal by Fray Bartolomé de las Casas, and Oviedo’s Natural History of the West Indies) are included along with the pertinent Latin selection from Peter Martyr. When Peter Martyr was writing in the fifteenth century, it was agreed upon by scholars and men of literature at the time that the proper Latin to use was that of Marcus Tullius Cicero. Hence Martyr’s Latinity is quite classical and, in fact, the simplicity of his literary style resembles that of Julius Caesar.

Special Features

• A chronology of events from August, 1492 through March, 1493
• 5 Latin selections about Columbus’ First Voyage from Peter Martyr of Angleria’s De Orbe Novo
• Vocabulary and grammar help on the page facing the Latin text
• Reproductions of illustrations from Columbus’ 1493 letter
• Chapter end notes that present pertinent background information along with the Latin text for easy reference
• Auxiliary sentences that guide the student to understanding Peter Martyr’s Latin
• A Latin to English Lexicon at the back of the book
• A complete bibliography