One of the Chief Ladies of Secota - Theodor de Bry

A 1590 copperplate engraving by Theodor de Bry depicting two Secota women, based on original sketches by John White from the Roanoke expedition.

This copperplate engraving by Theodor de Bry originates from the 1590 publication 'A Briefe and True Report of the New Found Land of Virginia'. The work is based on the original watercolour sketches produced by John White during the 1585 expedition to Roanoke. De Bry, a Flemish engraver working in Frankfurt, adapted White's observations for a European audience, creating a visual record of the indigenous populations encountered by English explorers.

The composition presents two figures, identified as women of the Secota people, positioned in the foreground. The figure on the left faces the viewer, while the figure on the right is shown from behind, providing a comprehensive view of their attire and physical appearance. Both women wear fringed skirts and decorative bands on their arms and legs. Their posture is composed, with arms crossed, reflecting the formalised style of sixteenth-century ethnographic documentation.

In the background, the artist includes a river scene featuring figures engaged in fishing activities. Small boats and individuals using spears are depicted with precise, thin lines, providing context to the daily life of the Secota. The landscape is rendered with a sense of distance, using horizontal hatching to suggest the water and the horizon line. The engraving technique allows for a high degree of detail in the figures, particularly in the rendering of the skin and the texture of the garments.

This print serves as a primary visual document of the early contact period between European explorers and the indigenous peoples of North America. While the interpretation of these subjects is filtered through the lens of European artistic conventions of the late sixteenth century, the work remains a significant example of early colonial-era printmaking. The clarity of the line work and the systematic approach to documenting cultural practices reflect the scientific and exploratory interests of the Renaissance period.