1893 Perron map TRINIDAD, LESSER ANTILLES (#19)

Description

Perron18_019
1893 Perron map TRINIDAD, LESSER ANTILLES (#19)
Nice map titled
Trinidad,
from wood engraving with fine detail and clear impression, nice hand coloring. Overall size approx. 18 x 17 cm, image size approx. 11.5 x 10 cm. From
La Nouvelle Géographie universelle, la terre et les hommes
, 19 vol. (1875-94), great work of Elisee Reclus. Cartographer is Charles Perron.
Trinidad
Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands  of Trinidad and Tobago. The island lies 11 km (6.8 mi) off the northeastern  coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. Though  geographically part of the South American continent, from a socio-economic  standpoint it is often referred to as the southernmost island in the Caribbean.  With an area of 4,768 km2 (1,841 sq mi), it is also the fifth largest in the  West Indies.
The original name for the island in the Arawaks' language was Iëre which meant  "Land of the Hummingbird". Christopher Columbus renamed it "La Isla de la  Trinidad" ("The Island of the Trinity"), fulfilling a vow he had made before  setting out on his third voyage. This has since been shortened to Trinidad.
Caribs and Arawaks lived in Trinidad long before Christopher Columbus  encountered the islands on his third voyage in 1498. The island remained Spanish  until 1797, but it was largely settled by French colonists from the French  Caribbean, especially Martinique. In 1889 the two islands became a single  British Crown colony. Trinidad and Tobago obtained self-governance in 1958 and  independence from the United Kingdom in 1962.
Major landforms include the hills of the Northern, Central and Southern Ranges  (Dinah ranges), the Caroni, Nariva and Oropouche Swamps, and the Caroni and  Naparima Plains. Major river systems include the Caroni, North and South  Oropouche and Ortoire Rivers. There are many other natural landforms such as  beaches and waterfalls. Trinidad has two seasons per calendar year: the rainy  season and the dry season. El Cerro del Aripo, at 940 metres (3,084 ft), is the  highest point in Trinidad. It is part of the Aripo Massif and is located in the  Northern Range on the island, northeast of the town of Arima.