A Briefe and True Report of the New Found Land of Virginia (ePub)

Thomas Harriot (c. 1560 - 2 July 1621), an English astronomer, mathematician, ethnographer, and translator, is credited with remarkable contributions to the advancement of various scientific domains during the Elizabethan era. One of his most notable works is 'A Briefe and True Report of the New Found Land of Virginia' (1588), a significant publication that offered the early English-speaking world its first detailed depiction of the landscape, natural resources, indigenous peoples, and potential for colonization of what is today the American state of Virginia. Harriot's account stemmed from his participation in the expedition to the New World led by Sir Walter Raleigh, who sponsored Harriot's researches and recognitions (Shirley, 1985). As an adept observer and recorder, Harriot's ethnographic work predated the more often celebrated accounts by John Smith by over two decades, providing an early example of methodologies that would become crucial to the field. His literary style combined keen empirical descriptions with a prosaic delivery that aimed to inform and persuade a European audience of the possibilities presented by the New World. Beyond his contribution to early American literature, Harriot was also a pioneer in celestial navigation and a proponent of the use of the telescope for astronomical observations, further cementing his legacy as a polymath and a key figure in the scientific revolution of the Renaissance period (Kargon, 1966).