Cultura, e opulencia do Brasil por suas drogas, e minas

Creator

Antonil, André João

Place

Lisboa

Publisher

Na Officina Real Deslandesiana

Date

Anno de 1711

Notes

Signatures: *⁸ A-N⁸ (*1, *2, *8, G5, H8, M3, N7 versos blank; N8 blank) (C2 missigned C3)

Signed on p. [11], 1st count: O Anonymo Toscano

This first and rare edition of Antonil's book was seized and destroyed by the Portuguese government for the information it revealed about Brazil's lucrative sugar industry and gold mines. To publish news about the riches of that colony would arouse envy and lead to aggression by other nations. It's an important book on eighteenth century Brazil's economic and social history

André João Antonil is the pseudonym of João Antonio Andreoni, an Italian Jesuit priest born in Tuscany, who was attracted to Brazil in 1681 by Father Antonio Vieira

Title vignette

Local notes

John Carter Brown Library copy has an early manuscript note on half title about the rarity of the book: Libro divenuto rariss°. a ragione che il Rè D. Giovanni V mandò raccogliere tutti gli Esemplari, che fù possible per timore di dar gusto ai Straniere dell' opulencia del Brasile