In November 1821 Sellow had been in Brazil for seven years. Numerous research trips, for example with Maximilian von Wied-Neuwied (1782-1867) and Ignaz Maria von Olfers (1798-1872), had already been undertaken. Diary entries for this time are sporadic. The first definitive note in Sellow’s own hand begins with the trip to Montevideo. At the beginning of September he left Rio de Janeiro unaccompanied and sailed to the capital of the then Brazilian province of Cisplatina where he remained for the next few months. He collected primarily in the Montevideo region and undertook smaller excursions. He sent three cases of minerals back to Berlin, one case with preserved plant material, one with seeds, one with living plants, and four cases and a barrel with insects, birds, mammals, fish, snakes, intestinal worms, and anatomical preparations.

The following three transcript pages from diary number 2 cover the start of this journey. Typical for Sellow’s documentation are sketches supplemented by marginal notes. The drawings include the emblem of Rio, the famous Pão de Açúcar which we know as Sugarloaf Mountain.