‘The Measure of the World’: The Hispanic Society Holds Exhibit on Portugal’s Greatest Poet

The tomb of Luís de Camões in Lisbon. Juan Antonio F. Segal/CC BY-SA 2.0

About 500 years ago, Portugal produced its greatest poetic light, a man who lived a life of passion, adventure, travel, and artistic achievement: Luís de Camões. The historical record offers scant information on this great poet’s life, but we do know some facts for certain.

Camões was born in Lisbon around 1525 and likely born into a wealthy class. But we know little of his education except that he possessed an extensive familiarity with the philosophy and culture of his own era and that of the ancients. He must have been a lively character with a wild youth because he was arrested for participating in a brawl. He traveled extensively, spending time in Morocco, India, and Mozambique, and he participated in military expeditions.

Back in Portugal by 1570, Camões penned his most famous work, “The Lusiads,” an epic poem that tells the story of Vasco da Gama’s discovery of the sea route to India. The poem achieved immediate notoriety; Camões received a royal pension after its publication, likely in recompense for crafting the national epic. In addition to this epic poem, Camões is today admired for his shorter lyric poems. He passed away around 1580.

A 1577 portrait of Camões. Public Domain

A Contemporary Celebration

To celebrate this man, The Hispanic Society in New York City partnered with the Portugal-based Gaudium Magnum Foundation to create an exhibit highlighting Camões’s life and work. The exhibit contains two main sections: a book collection curated by Isabel Almeida, assistant professor at Lisbon University, and a kiosk display meant to introduce visitors unfamiliar with Camões to this remarkable poet.

The book exhibit, entitled “Metamorphoses: the Shape of Books and Fortune of Texts” delves into the textual history of “The Lusiads” and has several purposes. First, the collection’s variety of editions reveal the work’s dynamic life, including the many translations that sprung up shortly after publication. The collection includes translations from the 16th and 17th centuries. The rapid translations enabled Camões’s “The Lusiads” to become a classic that crossed national and temporal temporal borders.

In curator Isabel Almeida’s words, “Books are wonderful travelers in this period.” In its concrete textual history, “The Lusiads” underscores the relationships between cultures—especially the Spanish and Portuguese, but also the Italian, American, and Classical—and the ways that books form links between people, eras, ideas, and places.

Indeed, like all the greatest poetry, Camões’s work has a universal appeal that transcends nationalities. As the Hispanic Society puts it in their description of the exhibit, “this famous poet—a symbol of a changing world—spoke to all eras and ... his words deserve global recognition.”

Global recognition is one goal of the kiosk exhibit, which uses a scene from “The Lusiads” as a key to open up the life and work of Camões, including the universal resonance of his themes. The crucial theme highlighted in the scene is humanity’s yearning for knowledge.

A 1922 map of the first voyage of Vasco da Gama. PD-US

The scene in question occurs as Vasco da Gama rounds the Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of Africa. A strange and monstrous being, Adamastor, confronts the expedition, and da Gama is filled with terror. Almeida explains what happens next, and how this scene is significant in understanding Camões’s central theme:

“So they’re facing something new ... what Gama sees is a monster and a master. But then there’s a moment where Gama controls his fear. And when Gamma asks, ‘Who are you?’ everything changes. So, slowly Adamastor loses his ferocity. Slowly he starts telling his story, which is a very tragic story. And by the end of the episode, the monster disappears.”

“For Gama, asking the most simple question (‘Who are you?’) is enough to open a new path and to have access to a new vision of the world. Isn’t this a powerful, timeless lesson?”

"Gigante Adamastor," 1933, by Jorge Colaço. Public Domain

Almeida sees in this scene—and throughout the poem—an echo of the truth Aristotle announced at the beginning of his “Metaphysics”: All human beings naturally desire to know. In a sense, it’s our most fundamental desire, according to the philosopher. As we learn more about the world, we clear away the fog of fear, just as da Gama’s questioning of Adamastor transforms him from a monster into a sympathetic figure.

The Poet’s Lasting Effects

It was this thirst for knowledge that drove the Portuguese to become great explorers during the “Age of Exploration,” which lasted from the 15th to the 17th century. Camões himself worked as a navigator for the Portuguese empire, and his poetic work grew out of those experiences. Moreover, his greatest poem’s subject is the story of a journey that changed the world thanks to new knowledge. Almeida says, “In periods such as the 16th century, you can speak about an acceleration of history because everything happens so quickly. At such a speed that, this awareness of changes, of the impact of changes becomes huge.”

Camões was a part of that period of change, and his poetry reflects that reality. “The main work of Camões is ... about the voyage that changed decisively the measure of the world. We’re talking about the voyage of Vasco da Gama. And we’re talking of indeed something that was decisive, for instance, for what we are living now. Globalization wouldn’t be possible without Gama.”

The cover of a 1572 edition of "The Luisadas" by Luís de Camões. PD-US

Vasco da Gama’s seminal voyage reconfigured European civilization’s understanding of the world and contributed to its knowledge of the scale of the globe. During Camões’s time, the world was opening up.

Ultimately, Almeida and her associates hope that the Hispanic Society’s exhibit will open up Camões’s world to others, providing a window into a rich and exciting nexus of art, exploration, and history. In particular, they wish to inspire the Hispanic community with a deeper knowledge of their heritage—a heritage in which Camões holds a special place.

What arts and culture topics would you like us to cover? Please email ideas or feedback to [email protected]