Pretty Painting The Danish auction house of Bruun Rasmussen represents some of the most beautiful and obscure items that originated from the Danish West Indies. 🇩🇰 Prized Collectibles A few months ago, the auctioneers sold two treasured paintings of the Battle of West Kay. They portrayed a historic event that occurred outside the harbor of […]
DANISH West Indies
Saint Croix 1770 – 1776 book by Robert Amandus Johnson
Robert Amandus Johnson My beloved friend, Bob Johnson wrote a fascinating account of the early history of the Virgin Islands in his book, St. Croix 1770 – 1776. It’s a great read and filled with never before seen photographs! Here is an excerpt from the back of the book. Saint Croix History “Robert Amandus Johnson […]
Danish West Indies Satirical Lithograph for Sale ~ 1901
Lithograph This double-page image from Judge magazine satirizes American politics in the wake of the Spanish-American War. 🇩🇰 It centers on a stare-down between the United States as a big turkey and a small duck with bristled hair and a furrowed brow, representing the Philippines. Treaty of Paris In 1898, the Treaty of Paris gave […]
The Marriage of Opposites Book by Alice Hoffman
The Marriage of Opposites From the New York Times bestselling author of The Dovekeepers and The Museum of Extraordinary Things comes a forbidden love story. It is set on the tropical island of St. Thomas about the extraordinary woman who gave birth to the painter, Camille Pissarro—the Father of Impressionism. Growing up on idyllic St. Thomas […]
Fireburn Book by Apple Gidley
Fireburn Book There’s a new book available about one of the most horrific events that took place on the island of St. Croix. Here’s an interesting excerpt from the book. The Danish-owned island of Saint Croix (1870s) vibrates with passion and tension as Anna Clausen, a young Anglo-Danish woman, returns to her childhood home after her mother’s […]
Could This Be Morningstar Beach in St. Thomas?
For those of you familiar with the Virgin Islands, doesn’t this painting above look like it was painted at Morningstar Beach on St. Thomas? ⛱ Viggo Johansen This painting was created by Viggo Johansen, one of Denmark’s most prominent painters in the 1890s. As a boy, he showed an inherent talent for drawing and studied […]
Strange Fish Caught Off St. Thomas ~ 1857
One of the strangest fish ever caught off the Virgin Islands was thrown aboard by the wheel of a steamer one hundred and sixty years ago! 🐠 Creature’s Description Imagine an ugly, bloated sort of perch with a slimy, offensive skin, somewhat like a frog in as much as it had lungs. This strange sea […]
Christopher Columbus Visits the Virgin Islands ~ 1493
Christopher Columbus This week marks another milestone in Virgin Islands history ~ November 14, 1493 Christopher Columbus, sailing to the New World on his second voyage in 1493, dropped anchor on the north side of St. Croix. The island’s first “visitor” took in the unspoiled tropical beauty and rolling hills of a Caribbean […]