The 1839 and 1841 expeditions of Frederick Catherwood and John Lloyd Stephens sparked early popular interest in the Maya civilization, which had been largely undocumented at the time. As Stephens published popular accounts of their travels, Catherwood, an artist and architect, made sepia drawings of the sites they visited. Aided by a camera lucida, he was able to render the ruined architecture—intricately graven with strange and unfamiliar glyphs—with such precision that later archaeologists were able to decipher the inscriptions. Twenty-five of these images, garnished with romantic landscapes beset by overgrown vegetation, were published as lithographs in the exquisite folio volume Views of Ancient Monuments in Central America, Chiapas and Yucatan (1844), limited to 300 copies. "In the whole range of literature on the Maya," writes David Drew, in his Lost Chronicles of the Maya, "there has never appeared a more magnificent work." 

The Ibis’s giclée process uses archival pigment inks on 100% cotton rag paper to achieve crisp detail and rich, lasting color. Unlike posters, they will not yellow with time, but will maintain their original quality for as long as you own them.

All of The Ibis's prints come with a 100% happiness guarantee. If you are disappointed in your purchase for any reason, you are welcome to return it for a full refund.