Cafraria

Boym wrote a description of Mozambique, then known as Kafraria (from the Kafra - the name the Arabs used to refer to the Bantu peoples), during the stopover of the ship on which he was going to Macau for the first time. It was in the winter of 1643 and 1644. Boym had the opportunity there, among others participate in hunting hippos (called by him "sea horses"). His observations about the habits of the natives prevailing in Mozambique at that time and descriptions of nature were included in the essay "Cafraria", which he sent to his friend, Fr. Ciślaka. He also described his visits to two Portuguese factories in Sena on the Zambezi River and on the island of Mozambique. The essay is enriched with five of his own watercolor illustrations and two drawings. It is one of the oldest and most interesting Polish descriptions of contemporary Africa.

The original manuscript is in the Roman Archivum Societatis Iesu in Rome at Goa 34-I, ff. 150-160. The title of the original is "Cafraria, a P.M. Boym Polono Missa Mozambico 1644 Januario 11".
Link to the English translation of the text "Cafraria", click here