Images of the USA

O my America! My new found land/ My kingdome.../ My Myne of precious stones, My Empirie/ How blest am I in this discovering thee!"

The "Myne of precious stones" is how John Donne depicted the newly discovered American continent, following the Elizabethan navigation and the possession of Virginia, as a metaphor for the woman who was the object of his desire.

However, for me, the "Myne of precious stones" is the North American continent, the USA, with its populous and bountiful cities such as New York, New Orleans, Atlanta, San Francisco, its rivers, the Mississippi, its lakes, its immense distances, its deserts, its wilderness areas, its canyons, and of course, its wonderful flora and fauna.

This book of drawings in pencil, ink and water colour shows some of the precious stones that I have found.