View of the city of Bantam

Acquired From: Leen Helmink

Colouring: Uncoloured

Condition: Good

Confirmed: 3/10/2024

Date Acquired: 7/6/2018

Description: This engraving commemorates the historic 1596 voyage of the first Dutch East Indies expedition to Bantam. In the foreground, Dutch seamen are welcomed by an Eastern ruler on a coastal promontory, while ships flying flags of Amsterdam, Delft and Haarlem are anchored behind them. Although the exact identities of the seamen are unknown, the scene reflects a moment when the Dutch fleet, led by Cornelis de Houtman under the First Compagnie van Verre, reached Bantam. Strategically positioned for trade at the northwestern tip of Java along the Sunda Strait, Bantam flourished before losing prominence in 1619 to Batavia (now Jakarta).nHigh above Bantams fortified city, the personification of Asia sits amidst clouds. To her left are figures symbolising eastern lands where the Dutch traded spices and other goodsIndia, China, Sumatra, Arabia, and Java. To her right stand figures representing more westerly lands, including Moses holding the tablets of law, a Tartar, a Persian, a Muscovite (Russian), and the Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama, who opened a route to the East by reaching India via Africa in 149799. The Latin inscription below the scene provides additional historical context, tracing the European pursuit of Asia lands from the Alexander the Great to Vasco da Gama:nWhen Alexander the Great arrived in India,nHis enquiring mind led him to explore Asias cities;nSoon afterwards, the same longing gripped Romuluss people,nAnd Sri Lanka became a familiar land to them;nFinally, after centuries passed,nLord Vasco da Gama travelled this route;nAfter clearing the cape of Africa and Japhetie,nHe taught mankind how to navigate their sails here.

Engraver: Serwouters, Pieter (1586-1657)

First published: Separate Publication. Amsterdam: Jansz. Cornelis and Anthonij. Francisco, 1604

Image Size (cm): 33.5.31

Mapmaker: Sibrantsz. Pieter

Price: 38,000

Primary Category: Prints & Related Material

Purchase Reference: Ledger 2022. Email 21/05/2018 also 06/09/2016

Rarity: R1 Extremely rare – occasionally seen on the market

Sheet size (cm): 37×34.2

Technique: Copper Engraving

This state: 1604, (unrecorded)