The Construction of Indigenous Americans and Spanish Conquistadors in Theodore de Bry's Engravings
type: ScholarlyArticle
description: The primary visual sources depicting the treatment of Indigenous peoples by conquerors, particularly the works of Protestant engraver Theodore de Bry, offer valuable insights into the interactions between European explorers and Indigenous Americans. De Bry's illustrations, influenced by Bartolomé de Las Casas's accounts of Spanish atrocities, serve as a condemnation of Spanish Catholic colonization in the Americas
abstract: The primary visual sources depicting the treatment of Indigenous peoples by conquerors, particularly the works of Protestant engraver Theodore de Bry, offer valuable insights into the interactions between European explorers and Indigenous Americans. De Bry's illustrations, influenced by Bartolomé de Las Casas's accounts of Spanish atrocities, serve as a condemnation of Spanish Catholic colonization in the Americas. Through his engravings, de Bry politicizes and weaponizes Indigenous bodies, portraying them as deserving of conquest and civilizing, albeit by Protestant conquerors. His depictions of Indigenous peoples, based on biased accounts relayed from explorers, perpetuate stereotypes used to justify colonization. De Bry's Protestant vision, evident in his works, advocates for Protestant colonization as a preferable alternative to Spanish Catholic conquest. Despite condemning Spanish abuses, de Bry's ultimate goal is not to end colonialism but to promote Protestant colonization in the Americas.
type: WebPage
date published: 2025-06-16
date modified: 2025-06-16
language: en
license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en
encoding: MediaObject
  encoding format: application/pdf
keywords: Isabel V. Maine-Torres, Psychology, Engraving, SUSTAINABILITY, Protestantism, Atrocities, Catholics, Stereotypes, Indigenous peoples, Colonialism, Belgium, Europe
author: Isabel V. Maine-Torres
  type: Person
  affiliation: Syracuse University
publisher: Outcome
citation: Maine-Torres, Isabel V. 2024. “THE CONSTRUCTION OF INDIGENOUS AMERICANS AND SPANISH CONQUISTADORS IN THEODORE DE BRY’S ENGRAVINGS.” Cross Currents 74 (4): 458–64. https://dx.doi.org/10.1353/cro.2024.a963636