The Dodo’s Eulogy: An Examination of the Impressions of Raphus cucullatusMain MenuTable of ContentsDiscovery and Early HistoryEarly ImpressionsEarly Cultural ImpactModern DevelopmentsPopular DepictionsHow Far We’ve ComeThe Non-Death of the DodoReferencesJacob T Fagnani3fb125824c10a503a6fa15f2705290553cf76e81Binghamton University, State University of New York
Masselman Reference
12019-03-28T19:45:50-07:00Jacob T Fagnani3fb125824c10a503a6fa15f2705290553cf76e81331566plain2019-03-28T19:55:00-07:00Jacob T Fagnani3fb125824c10a503a6fa15f2705290553cf76e81
12019-03-26T00:52:05-07:00Discovery and Early History22plain2019-05-12T00:51:58-07:00The late 16th C. was defined by European expeditions in the Indian Ocean. The Dutch and the English raced to claim a stake in spices and other eastern goods. The spring of 1598 marked the beginning of the Second Dutch Expedition to Indonesia by Admiral Cornelis Jacob van Neck of Amsterdam accompanied by Vice Admiral Wybrand van Warwijck on another ship (Masselman 1963). Separated by a storm off the coast of Madagascar,Cornelis landed in Madagascar while Warwijck brought his men ashore another island off the eastern coast of Africa, claiming it for the Dutch as Mauritius, named after the stadholder of the Dutch Republic and prince of Orange, Maurits (Masselman 1963).
HeyndrickDircksz Jolinck, a Dutch sailor under the command of Vice Admiral Wybrand van Warwijck was sent with a group of men to survey the island. Jolinck’s journal was the first written account of a dodo bird and marked the European discovery of the species, which was paired with the discovery of this island (Hume 2006).
Numerous ships would pass through Mauritius in the coming century with Europe's newfound foothold in the East. This led to continuing encounters with the dodo bird. Specimens were captured and also brought on journeys around the globe. Diplomatic relationships were being forged and exchanges of gifts and goods were commonplace. Living dodos had been exported to Europe, India, and Japan within the century, spreading interest about the species.
Yet, contact with Europeans was not fortuitous for the dodo, ultimately resulting in its extinction in the mid-to-late 17th C. Despite this, the dodo has lived on in studies of the natural world aswell as in popular culture. While the knowledge of the dodo has shifted since its discovery, many details surrounding it still remain unevolved.
