Brazil: Tupinamba Indian shamans (caraibes) wearing feather head-dresses surrounded by men dancing in a circle. Engraving by T. de Bry after J. de Léry, 1592.

Seen at a village called Cotiva. The men in the centre of the circle are described by De Léry as "certain false prophets that they call carai'bes, who, going and coming from village to village like popish indulgence-bearers, would have it believed that by their communication with spirits they can give to anyone they please the strength to vanquish enemies in war, and, what is more, can make grow the big roots and the fruits (which I have described elsewhere) produced by this land of Brazil. ... I will describe the solemn poses and gestures that they used here. They stood close to each other, without holding hands or stirring from their place, but arranged in a circle, bending forward, keeping their bodies slightly stiff, moving only the right leg and foot, with the right hand placed on the buttocks, and the left hand and arm hanging: in that posture they sang and danced. Because there were so many of them, there were three circles, and in the middle of each circle there were three or four of these caraibes, richly decked in robes, headdresses, and bracelets made of beautiful natural feathers of various colors, holding in each hand a maraca or rattle made of a fruit bigger than an ostrich-egg (of which I have spoken elsewhere). So that (as they said) the spirit might thereafter speak through these rattles, to dedicate them to this use they made them sound incessantly. … Moreover, these caraibes, advancing and leaping forward, then drawing back, did not always stay in one place as the others did. I noticed that they would frequently take a wooden cane four or five feet long, at the end of which was burning some of the dried herb petun (which I have mentioned elsewhere); turning and blowing the smoke in all directions on the other savages, they would say to them, "So that you may overcome your enemies, receive all of you the spirit of strength." And thus these master caraibes did several times. These ceremonies went on for nearly two hours, with the five or six hundred men dancing and singing incessantly; such was their melody that, although they do not know what music is, those who have not heard them would never believe that they could make such harmony."--Whatley, loc. cit.

Below the engraving is musical notation for the songs sung by the dancers

[Frankfurt] : [T. de Bry], [1592]

1 print : engraving, with letterpress and musical notation ; image 16.8 x 20.3 cm

Historia navigationis. ...

Composed by De Bry adapting individual figures in the earlier editions of De Léry's narrative published in Geneva in 1586

Janet Whatley, Jean de Léry History of a voyage to the land of Brazil, otherwise called America: containing the navigation and the remarkable things seen on the sea by the author, translated by Janet Whatley, Berkeley, Calif.: University of California Press, 1992, pp. 140-142

Wellcome Collection 34297i