The representation of Caesalpinia echinata (Brazilwood) in Sixteenth-and-Seventeenth-Century Maps

Abstract

Brazilwood was the first product found in Terra de Santa Cruz, and the first explored by Portuguese colonization of Brazil. This study aims at the Occidental Cartography and the historical files represented by Portugal's interest on mapping the marketed product found in Brazil. There presentation of Brazilwood in maps was possible due to scientific advancements, new land discoveries, and technological improvement during the 15th century, which all have taken cartography to a whole new period, stressing Portuguese hegemony in Asia and in the New World. The goal of this research was to identify and analyze maps from 16th and 17th centuries that represented the geographical distribution of Brazilwood, and its trade. Brazilwood was represented in many maps by illumination and detailed by different cartographers. The maps and other evidence for this research were found in historical files held in both Brazil and Portugal.