Frederick Catherwood was one of the greatest explorers of the 19th century and yet he remains an enigma to this day. He was an English artist, architect and explorer. Catherwood made many trips to the Mediterranean between 1824 and 1832 to draw the monuments made by the Egyptians, Carthaginians, and Phoenicians. However, he is best remembered for his meticulously detailed drawings of the ruins of the Maya civilization.
In 1836 he met travel writer John Lloyd Stephens in London. They read the account of the ruins of Copan and decided to visit Central America for themselves and produce a more detailed and better illustrated account. The expedition came together in 1839 and continued through the following year, visiting dozens of ruins and resulting in the detailed description of 44 sites, many for the first time.
Stephens and Catherwood are credited for the rediscovery of the Maya civilization, and through their publications brought the Maya back into the minds of the Western World. The expedition resulted in the best selling book Incidents of Travel in Central America, Chiapas, and Yucatan, published in 1841, with text by Stephens and engravings based on the drawings of Catherwood. Stephens and Catherwood returned to Yucatan to make further explorations, resulting in yet another best seller - Incidents of Travel in Yucatan in 1843.
Casa Catherwood is a boutique that focuses on the art and cultures of Mesoamerica - primarily the Maya which Stephens & Catherwood are credited for the re-discovery.
While the culture of the Yucatan is our primary focus, we also feature unique pieces from other Mesoamerican cultures and the regions they inhabited.
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