Colouring: Uncoloured
Condition: Very Good
Confirmed: No
Description: John Russell was a distinguished British cartographer and engraver active in London during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Initially apprenticed as a goldsmith under William Palmer, Russell later transitioned to engraving and printing, where he made significant contributions to the field of cartography. nOver the course of his career, Russell collaborated with prominent publishers such as Alexander Dalrymple, Benjamin Henry, Robert Sayer, John Moore, and William Guthrie. His expertise in mapmaking was further disseminated through the mentorship of apprentices like Alexander Findlay and Samuel Clapp, both of whom went on to become notable figures in their own right. nOperating from Constitution Row, Gray's Inn Lane in Middlesex (London), Russell produced a variety of maps that were highly regarded for their precision and detail. Among his significant works is this sea chart of the Indian Ocean and South Pacific that traces the route of the expedition led by Rear Admiral Antoine Raymond Joseph de Bruni d'Entrecasteaux. This voyage, undertaken to locate the lost ships of Jean-François de Galaup, comte de La Pérouse, traversed the Indian Ocean, charting the southern coastline of Australia, the northern coast of New Zealand, and the Spice Islands (modern-day Maluku Islands, Indonesia).nIn 1791, Jacques-Julien Houtou de Labillardière was appointed as the naturalist for d'Entrecasteaux's expedition to Oceania. The ought to uncover the fate of La Pérouses vessels, which had disappeared after departing Botany Bay in 1788. Although the expedition failed to find any trace of La Pérouse, it made significant scientific contributions. The ships explored key regions, including southwest Australia, Tasmania, the North Island of New Zealand, and the East Indies. Labillardière, working alongside fellow scientists Claude Antoine-Gaspard Riche and Étienne Pierre Ventenat, and assisted by gardener Félix Delahaye, collected an extensive array of of zoological, botanical, and geological specimens. The team also documented the customs and languages of Indigenous Australians and other local populations.nWhile the expedition was underway, the French Revolutionary Wars broke out in Europe. Upon reaching Java, the ships were seized by the British as spoils of war, and Labillardières painstakingly gathered collections were confiscated. Distraught at the loss of three years of work, Labillardière found an unexpected ally in Sir Joseph Banks, the renowned British naturalist who had accompanied Captain James Cook on his first voyage. Banks argued that scientific progress should transcend national conflicts and lobbied the British government for the return of the collections.nIn 1796, Bankss efforts succeeded, and Labillardières specimens were restored. That same year, Labillardière returned to France with his collections intact. In 1799, he published Relation du Voyage à la Recherche de la Pérouse, which was translated into English as An Account of a Voyage in Search of La Pérouse and published in London in 1800. The work earned widespread acclaim, bolstering Labillardières reputation and securing his election to the prestigious Académie des Sciences. Between 1804 and 1807, he further cemented his legacy by publishing Novae Hollandiae Plantarum Specimen, the first comprehensive scientific description of Australias flora.
First published: Labillardière, Jacques-Julien Houtou de An Account of a Voyage in Search of La Perouse Piccadilly. J. Debrett,1800
Mapmaker: Russell, John
Notes: Purchase details
Primary Category: Sea Charts
Rarity: R2 Very rare – one or two copies appear on the market
Technique: Copper Engraving
This state: 1800
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