ANTONIO PIGAFETTA, First

Voyage Around the World

 Background of the Author
Antonio Pigafetta –
 Famous Italian traveller born in Vicenza around 1490 and died in the same
city in 1534
 also known by the name of Antonio Lombardo or Francisco Antonio
Pigafetta. Initially linked to the order of Rhodes, which was Knight, went to
Spain in 1519, accompanied by Monsignor Francisco Chiericato, and was
made available from Carlos V to promote the company initiated by the
Catholic Monarchs in the Atlantic
 became a great friend with Magallanes, who accompanied, together with 
Juan Sebastián Elcano, in the famous expedition to the Moluccas begun in
August of 1519 and finished
in September 1522.
 He was wounded at the battle of the island
of Cebu in which Magellan was found dead.
Magellan’s Voyage
 Content Presentation
 The voyage of Magellan in search for a Westward
route to reach Asia as narrated by Antonio
Pigafetta revealed that the author was more of a
chronicler and geographer rather than a navigator.
 Showed a lot of details on the topography, flora
and culture as well as social structures, customs
and practices of the earlier Filipinos.
 He was not a navigator because on the attack of
Mactan, he did not explain the use of a smaller
craft instead of the galleon.
 He also reinforced the latter claim that the first
circumnavigator of the world aside from Elcano was
Enrique the slave of Magellan.
• The conversion of Rajah Humabon and his
wife and the story of Sto. Nino de Cebu, and
the Cross of Magellan.
Image of Filipinos During Pre-spanish
Philippines
Contribution and Relevance of the Document
Relevance
- impact of the circumnavigation was enormous
- the Magallanes-Elcano expedition overturned many of
the conventions of traditional geography
- provided a demonstration of the sphericity of the Earth
and revolutionized the solid belief. Pigafetta also wrote
a treatise of navigation mainly Ptolemaic inspiration,
but that contains the description of three methods to
determine the length, probably derived from the 
Francisco Faleiro.
 Methods
• 1) by calculating the distance from a point of
known length by observation of the distance
of the Moon from the ecliptic;
• 2) by observation of the conjunction of the
moon with a star or planet, and
• 3) through the use of the compass.
 The monument that he erects to Magellan, to
the achievement of the circumnavigation, but
most of all to himself, who survived and lived to
tell of this long and dangerous navigation still
endures as testimony to the power of that
desire to circumvent death which is at the root
of all travel literature, which seeks to fix and
conserve through writing the instability and flux
of human movement through space and time.
 Contribution First Voyage of Antonio
Pigafetta
-in understanding the grand narrative in Philippine
History are the following points or issues:
1. It entails time and space to justify the means by
spreading Christianity in the world particularly in
the Philippines which is considered as part of our
cultural, social, economic, political and spiritual
aspirations that drown impact on the lives of
Filipinos from generation to generation.
2. By Christian faith and obsession, the
Philippines marked as the only Christian country
in the geographical region of Asia.
 LEARNING EXPERIENCE
1. The spirit of Christian faith and devotion to
God, is the dominant feature that depicted
enthusiasm and purpose to sail despite the
turmoil brought about by their voyage. It
accords the values of patience, unity ,
courage and cooperation among the
members of the sailing group.
On the part of the native people in
the islands it gave rise to friendly
accommodation and acceptance to
the foreign invaders that led to the
imposition and beginning of
Christianity in the Philippines.