CASTRO (D. João de). PRIMEIRO ROTEIRO DA COSTA DA INDIA; Desde Goa até Dio. Porto. 1843.

CASTRO (D. João de). PRIMEIRO ROTEIRO DA COSTA DA INDIA; Desde Goa até Dio. Porto. 1843.
CASTRO (D. João de)
PRIMEIRO ROTEIRO DA COSTA DA INDIA; Desde Goa até Dio. Narrando a Viagem que fez o Vice-Rei D. Garcia de Noronha em soccorro desta Ultima Cidade. 1538-1539. Segundo MS. Autographo. Publicado por Diogo Köpke [...]. Porto: Typographia Commercial Portuense, 1843.

XLIV, XII, [2], 284 pp., 4 est., 1 retrato: il.; 255 mm. Lacking the Atlas volume; half calf.

FIRST EDITION. Very rare and important script in which D. João de Castro writes the diary of the Armada that, under the command of D. Garcia de Noronha, D. João III sent to India to help in the defense of Portuguese possessions. The Roteiros by D. João de Castro, three in total, form a body that, according to Boxer, mark a turning point in Portuguese nautical science: “the depth of knowledge wich these works reveal is trully extraordinary, and nothing seems to have escaped the keen perception of his scientific mind” [cf. Boxer, CR, From Lisbon to Goa, 1500-1750, p.IV.174]. Included in a set of two Itineraries that D. João de Castro himself entitled “Commentarios Geographicos da Costa da India”, the first itinerary of the coast of India reports the journey that began on November 21, 1538 and ended, round trip , on March 29, 1539. It was, according to the preface of the edition, written some time after the arrival, at least after February 1, 1540 and describes the hydrography of the coasts that it covers, at the same time giving a brief geographical outline of the coastal countries, some notions of political history, other notes on natural history, among others. He is the first author to describe the underground temples of the island of Elephant and Salsette, the ruins of the city of Thana, the quay of Quelecim, the columns of Vasai; he is also the first navigator to carry out extensive experiments with the invention of Pedro Nunes, the instrument of shadows, a very simple instrument, similar to a sundial, but with an ingenious innovation that made it possible to directly measure heights through the shadows projected by the Sun; and, finally, made several advances in the knowledge of needle deviations.

¶ Inocêncio, v. 3, p. 345; Importante Biblioteca Particular, II, 213; Enciclopedia of Exploration, v.1, p. 202 (C74); BOXER, C.R., “Portuguese Roteiros, 1500-1700” in From Lisbon to Goa, 1500-1700, Studies in Portuguese Maritime Enterprise, London, Variorum Reprints, 1984, secção IV