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The Whale assists in the discovery of new worlds
Named collection: Allan Forbes Collection
Object type: print
Maker: unknown
Place made: unknown
Date made: 1810-1899
Materials: ink; paper; mounting
Measurements: 9 in x 13 in
Nomenclature: religious
Classification: whales
Nineteenth-century reproduction of a seventeenth century print, showing a large whale with stovepipe-like blowholes and a ship, altar, and praying men upon its back; the whale and five ships and boats are shown among islands off the Atlantic (not shown to scale) including the Isle of St. Brandano, the Canary Islands, and Insulae Fortunae; on the right are Spain and Africa. In the lower margin is printed "From Philopono's Nova Typis 1621" and "The Whale assists in the Discovery of New Worlds"; the modern typeface and paper indicate that this is not the 1621 original. The altar and praying men is a reference to one of the stories of St. Brendan, who lived in 6th c. Ireland, which describes the saint building an altar on the back of a sleeping whale. Labeled "Pl. V"
AF-LX-0107