Esquemeling, Alexander Olivier:

$170,000 · Offered by William Reese Company · No longer available

DE AMERICAENSCHE ZEE-ROOVERS. BEHELSENDE EEN PERTINENTE EN WAERACHTIGE BESCHRIJVING VAN ALLE DE VOORNAEMSTE ROVERYEN, EN ONMENSCHELIJCKE WREEDHEDEN, DIE DE ENGELSE EN FRANSE ROVERS, TEGENS DE ... Rare first edition of the original account of swashbuckling pirate exploits in the Caribbean. Known in English as the Buccaneers of America, the book has twelve engravings that bring the fearsome pirate captains to life and unflinching descriptions of the violence and plunder that both horrified and fascinated readers.Perhaps the most notorious figure in the book is the privateer Henry Morgan (1635–1688). As Morgan's confidante and barber-surgeon, the author Alexandre Olivier Esquemelin (ca. 1645–1707, also spelled Exquemelin, Esquemeling, Exquemeling, or Oexmelin) had an onboard view of some of the most audacious raids in pirate history, including Morgan's sack of Maracaibo in 1669 and the daring assault on Panama in 1671 (both depicted in the plates). Esquemelin paints a complex portrait of Morgan as a brilliant tactician and fearless leader, but also a man capable of great cruelty. Following the publication of the English translation in 1684, which accused Morgan of torture and the use of nuns and monks as human shields, Morgan took steps to discredit the book and successfully brought a libel suit against the its English publishers William Crooke and Thomas Malthus.Esquemelin's vivid prose and intimate knowledge of buccaneer life captivated readers across Europe. From this edition

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