"La Terra de Hochelaga nella Nova Francia"from Terzo Volvme delle Navigationi et Viaggi by Ramusio, Giovanni Battista (1485-1557) and Gastaldi, Giacomo (c. 1500-1556) - 1556

Venice, 1556. THE EARLIEST PRINTED VIEW OF A NATIVE AMERICAN SETTLEMENT AND OF MONTREAL CANADA Woodcut: 123/8" x 167/8" References: F. St. George Spendlove, The Face of Early Canada (Toronto, 1958) 5, Plate 1; S. M. Morison, The European Discovery of America (New York, 1971) 410-417; R. V. Tooley, The Mapping of America (London, 1985) 211. This woodcut, published in Venice, is the first printed plan of an urban area in North America and is a particularly valuable record of a Native American settlement. Although largely imaginative, the plan was a close attempt to achieve scientific accuracy. The woodblock for the first state of the map was destroyed by fire in 1557 and for the second issue of 1556 a new woodblock was cut. The third edition (1606) is identical to the second, except that vermin had damaged the block, resulting in areas void of imprint. "La Terra de Hochelaga nella Nova Francia" is based upon Jacques Cartier's second voyage to the New World, begun in 1535, and must have been derived from a sketch or description brought home by the explorer. On October 2, Cartier arrived at the Huron village of Hochelaga, the future site of Montréal. As can be seen in Ramusio's woodcut, cut by Matteo Pagano, Cartier and his men were greeted by over one thousand Native Americans, presenting them with gifts and corn bread. The celebrations continued throughout the night with dancing and bonfires by the river edge. Hochelaga was surrounded by open maize fields and required significant fortification due to its location on one of the favorite warpaths of the Five Nations. It was protected by a wooden wall and two redoubts. Inside the wall the town contained approximately fifty bark and wood dwellings, each with several rooms and a centrally located open fireplace. After greeting the Chief of Hochelaga in the central plaza, Cartier and some of his men climbed Mount Royal, seen to the left of Ramusio's view. On the return from the excursion and back to their boats, some of Cartier's men were carried piggyback by obliging Native Americans and this too is illustrated in Ramusio's plan.. Book.