The River Sea: The Amazon in History, Myth, and LegendSince its discovery by Europeans in 1500, explorers, visionaries, soldiers of fortune, men of God, scientists, and slavers have been drawn to the legendary Amazon. The River Sea is a sweeping chronicle of those brave and hardy souls, ranging from the Spanish seafarer Vicente Pinzón, who discovered the river, to contemporary heroes and heroines, like Sister Dorothy Stang and Chico Mendes, whose efforts to save the rain forest cost them their lives. Among the vast cast of characters who people this drama of the Amazon are Francisco de Orellana, the first European to traverse the river from the Andes to the sea; the fiery priest Bartolomé de las Casas, defender of the indigenous peoples; the great scientist explorers Alexander von Humboldt and Alfred Russel Wallace; the madman and psychopath Lope de Aguirre; and the Peruvian Evangeline, Isabel Godin, who in 1769 crossed the continent, braving the terrors of the jungles to reunite with her husband, whom she had not seen in twenty years. The River Sea is a compelling account of five centuries of the history, the myths, and the legends of Río Amazonas, the most exotic and fascinating locale on earth. |
Contents
Chapter 4 | |
Chapter 5 | |
Chapter 6 | |
The Journey of María Isabel de Jesus Gramesón y Godin | |
Chapter 9 | |
Chapter 10 | |
Chapter 11 | |
Epilogue | |
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Common terms and phrases
aboard adventures Amazon Basin Andoas arrived Atahualpa Atlantic Bates Bates’s became began Belém Bonpland botanical Brazil Brazilian brother canoe Casas Casement Casiquiare century cinchona coast colonies Condamine conquistadors continued cordillera Cuzco D’Oreasaval death deforestation Dorado Dorothy Stang Empire environmental Europe European expedition exploration feet fever French Friar further Godin gold Gramesón Guiana Guzmán Hevea Humboldt hundred miles Ibid Inca Inca Empire Indians indigenous Isabel jaguar Jesuit journey jungle king land latex Lope de Aguirre Manaus Marañón Markham mission murder native natural Nevado Mismi numbers Óbidos Orellana Orinoco Pará Pedro percent Peru Pinzón Pizarro plantations Portugal Portuguese quinine Quito Raleigh Richard Spruce Río Negro Riobamba river route rubber industry Sacred Valley sailed Santarém scientific seringueiros settlement ship slaves South America Spain Spaniards Spanish species Spruce Tabatinga tappers thousand tree tributaries Uaupés Ucayali Ursúa Urubamba vast Venezuela Vespucci vessel viceroyalty village voyage Wallace Wallace’s