The last witness of Native American civilization was a Prince from Prussia. A feat that not even Alexander von Humboldt had achieved was accomplished by the Prussian Prince Maximilian of Wied-Neuwied: in 1815, he ventured on an expedition along the Eastern coast of Brasil. He was the first to describe one of the most biodiverse jungles of the world – his German-speaking readers were fascinated.
In 1832, at the age of fifty, he does it again: An expedition into the interior regions of North America. He is accompanied by Swiss painter Karl Bodmer. Their encounters with Native American tribes are documented in Bodmer’s paintings, which have shaped our understanding and idea of these indigenous peoples.
