An Appendix to the Former Work; Endeavoring a Discovery of the Unknown Parts of the World

An early 17th-century analysis of Terra Incognita and fantastical lands.

“And here we are upon a new and strange adventure, which no Knight Errant ever undertook before. Of things unknown, there is commonly no desire, so less discourse can probably be made upon them. By unknown, therefore we must understand less known, or not well discovered; and in that sense we made as well endeavor to say somewhat of them, as others with more pains and hazard to attempt the discovery.” 

This fascinating group of woodblock text sheets was originally published as part of Purchas His Pilgrimage, by Samuel Purchas. They describe the history and contemporary information available for the various unknown parts of the world during the early parts of the 17th century. Terra Incognita in both the northern and southern hemispheres are included, as well as less-known areas like the Solomon Islands. Fictional areas like New Atlantis, Faerie Land, and the Lands of Chivalrie are also mentioned, according to period literature and mythology.