[extracts from:] La estrella de Lima [Translation into French] Particulitez edifiantes de ville de Lima capitale du Perou.

Bookseller Notes

Echave y Assu's text does not begin until the third page, the first two being an account of how this rather extraordinary MS came into being. A copy of the printed book had been brought to Cayenne by pirates ('filibustiers') from St. Domingue in 1695, a colony renowned for its freebooters. Their first ship (?sailing from Lima) had foundered in the Straits of Magellan. They built another, and continued to Cayenne with their booty, which included other 'fort curieux' books in Spanish. A pirated edition, as it were. The MS would appear to be complete in itself (i.e. as much of it as was made), though the text trails off in mid-sentence at the end.The French first attempted to colonise Cayenne in 1604. The settlement was contested severally, and changed hands a number of times in the 17th century, the French finally establishing ascendancy in 1676. The translation of this work no doubt reflects French imperial ambitions.