Full details of each lot are displayed, except the lot number, estimate and price. You must be a subscriber to view lot numbers, estimates and prices.

Click here to view registration and subscription levels

Auction Location:
Melbourne
Date:
9-Nov-2015
Lot No.
***
Description:
Hondius: 'India quae Orientalis dicitur, et Insulae Adiacentes.' 1638 hand coloured, 390 x 485 mm, this is only the second printed map to record the Dutch discoveries made by Dirk Hartog of Western Australia in October 1616, Jan Carstensz on the western side of Cape York Peninsula in January 1623 and de Wit's on the northwest coast of Australia in 1628. De Wit's discoveries had first been shown on Gerritsz's map of 1628 under the name 'G.F. de Wits Landt'. Also noted are the Trial Islands near present-day Dampier, named after the ship the Trial, which had sailed for Java using the new sea route to the Indies pioneered by Brouwer in 1611. The Trial had struck unknown rocks on the night of 25 May 1622, and was wrecked with only 46 survivors including Captain Brookes. In his subsequent report to the Voc authorities in Batavia, Brookes stated that the rocks were well west of their true position, in an attempt to avoid blame for his error. Soon after a Dutch ship, the Wapen van Hoorn, ran aground in a storm at the island of d'Eendracht but managed to sail after the storm abated. Concerned for the viability of their trade route, the Voc prioritised the accuracy of their charting in the region, with captains and pilots being required to record all shallows and reefs in the area. Due to their incorrect placement on the Gerristz chart, the Trial Rocks remained a mystery for a further 200 years until Phillip Parker King, sailing in the Mermaid, confirmed their true position in 1820
Estimate:
***
Price:
***
Category:
Unclassified