Acquired From: Leen Helmink
Colouring: Coloured
Condition: Very Good
Confirmed: 1/10/2024
Date Acquired: 26/7/2014
Description: Lucas Janszoon Waghenaer's Spieghel der zeevaert (Mariner's Mirror), published in 1584-85, marked a significant milestone in maritime navigation. This groundbreaking pilot guide, designed specifically for coastal sailing, provided seamen with detailed charts, sailing directions, and practical advice on navigating the complex waters of Western Europe. The charts meticulously depicted key landmarks, harbors, and potential hazards like shoals and sandbanks, ensuring safer voyages along the coast. It was first translated from Dutch to English in 1588, German in 1589, French in 1590, and Latin in 1591 (for title page of this edition see entry #260). nFive years later, Amsterdam publisher Cornelis Claeszoon issued an expanded second edition titled Den Nieuwen Spiegel der zeevaert (The New Mirror of Navigation), with a version also published in Antwerp by Jean Bellère. A French edition followed in 1600 and was reprinted in 1605 (for title page of this edition see entry #260).nIn 1592, Waghenaer introduced Thresoor der zeevaert ("Treasure of Navigation") an updated pilot guide, that broadened its scope to include a description of Mediterranean coast, the voyages of Sir Francis Drake and Thomas Cavendish, and information about the East Indies and directions for sailing to China via the Arctic Ocean. He expanded this work a decade later with a twelve-page appendix titled Verclaringhe van die Oost-Indische zeevaert, ghedaen int Jaer 1600 (Explanation of the East Indian sea voyage made in the year 1600). This section provided an account of the voyage of Jacob Cornelisz. van Neck and Wijbrant Warwijck including a chart of the Sunda Strait. nWaghenaer innovative approach to chart making superimposing coastal profiles directly on the chart, helping navigators in approaching coastal areas with greater accuracy. This chart of Sunda strait for instance featured an inverted coastal profile of Java, enabling pilots to rotate the chart when approaching Bantam. nThe Sunda Strait chart highlighted the strategic significance of Bantam as the primary pepper port of the Sultanate of Bantam. It provided detailed depth soundings for Bantam Bay, the roadstead, the Strait itself, and the southern coast of Sumatra. Additionally, the chart marked Keyser's Island, where Pieter Dirkszoon Keyser, the chief pilot of the first Dutch fleet (1595-1597), died. nThe charts title, set in an elaborate strapwork cartouche, appeared in both Dutch and French, with two scale bars below. Decorative elements included a compass rose on the left, indicating the chart's orientation, as well as illustrations of two Dutch merchant ships positioned to the west and east of the strait. The map also featured a sea monster, along with depictions of palm trees and pepper plantations on both sides of the strait.
Engraver: van Doetecum, Baptista
First published: Thresoor der zeevaert Leiden: Franciscus Raphelengius,1592
Mapmaker: Waghenaer, Lucas Janszoon (ca. 1533-1606)
Other states: Third 1609
Price: 36,000
Primary Category: Southeast Asia
Purchase Reference: Ledger 2022. Also Inv. 2014-006
Rarity: R1 Extremely rare – occasionally seen on the market
References: Thomas Suárez, Early Mapping of Southeast Asia: The Epic Story of Seafarers, Adventurers, and Cartographers Who First Mapped the Regions Between China and India (Hong Kong: Periplus Editions, 1999), 19192. Fig. 109.
Technique: Copper Engraving
This state: 1602, Second
Website: Click here
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