Acquired From: Leen Helmink
Colouring: Coloured
Condition: Very Good
Confirmed: 3/10/2024
Date Acquired: 19/5/2021
Dealers ID No.: 18961
Description: The Van Keulen family was renowned for their significant contributions to mapmaking and atlas publishing. Their firm, In de Gekroonde Lootsman (In the Crowned Pilot), was established in 1678 by Johannes van Keulen I. In 1680, two years after establishing the business, Johannes secured exclusive rights from the Dutch government to publish sea atlases and pilot guides. That same year, he released De groote nieuwe vermeerderde zee atlas ofte water-werelt (Great New Enlarged Sea Atlas of the Water World), commonly known as Zee Atlas. The following year, he introduced the first two volumes of De Nieuwe lichtende Zee-fakkel (New Shining Sea Torch), often referred to as Zee fakkel. Over the next four years, three more volumes were added to this pilot book series.nIn 1714, a year before Johanness death, his son, Gerard took over the business, continuing to update and reissue his fathers works until his own passing in 1726. The firm was then passed t Gerards son, Johannes II, who solidified the familys legacy by publishing the sixth and final volume of the Zee-fakkel in 1753. This new volume contained previously restricted cartographic information on the East Indies, which had been closely guarded by the Dutch East India Company (VOC). Merchants were required to return maps to the VOC after each voyage to protect the secrecy of trade routes. With the publication of this final volume, such information was made publicly accessible. nThe Zee-fakkel included this sea chart of the Maldives notable as only the second map dedicated to the islands; the first being a crude miniature map created by Barent Langenes in 1598. While the VOC had no business interests in the Maldives, the vast area of shallow coral reefs in the northern Indian Ocean posed significant hazards for ships traveling between the Cape of Good Hope and Ceylon.nThe VOC's sailing instructions explicitly cautioned ships to avoid the Maldives whenever possible or to exercise extreme caution if they could not be avoided, especially at night. The instructions also noted that the precise latitudes of the safe passages between the atolls were uncertain due to conflicting and inconsistent reports.nA specific example highlighted on the chart is the shipwreck of the Ravenstein, an East Indiaman from the VOC chamber Zeeland, which was lost in 1726 on an outer reef of the Ari Atoll. The chart also illustrates many VOC trading posts and strongholds in India and Ceylon, prominently flying the Dutch colours.
First published: De nieuwe groote lichtende Zee-fakkel, Vol. 6, Amsterdam: Johannes van Keulen II, 1753
Image Size (cm): 56.5×50
Mapmaker: Keulen II, Johannes van (1704-1755)
Price: 4,000
Primary Category: Sea Charts
Purchase Reference: Ledger 2022
Rarity: R2 Very rare – one or two copies appear on the market
Sheet size (cm): 60×73.5
Technique: Copper Engraving
This state: 1753
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