Indonesia Expat
News

Rare Seventeenth Century Map of Australia on Display for First Time

The National Library of Australia has placed on display a rare seventeenth century map of Australia,

which was thought to have been lost.

The unique map, one of just two left, was created by renowned Dutch cartographer Joan Blaeu in 1659, who drew a map of the region of Australia, known at the time as Archipelagus Orientalis (Eastern Archipelago).

Library officials stated the map is based on a sighting of Tasmania by Abel Tasman’s crew aboard the Zeehaen in 1642.

Despite its high value, it is believed that the map had actually been buried away in the 1950s when an antique bookseller who owned a stockpile of books and maps went out of business. When it was discovered again in 2010, the owners were not aware of the map’s rarity until it went for sale at an auction.

“I think someone stumbled onto a treasure,” the library’s curator of maps, Dr Martin Woods, told news.com.au.

After being rediscovered in 2010, the map was acquired by the National Library of Australia in 2013 for an estimated price of AUS$600,000. After a few years of restoration, the map is now being put on display for the first time in the library’s Treasures Gallery until mid-2018.

According to the library, the map is the most current reflection of Australia at the time of its creation before the template was changed when Captain Cook explored the eastern coast in 1770. Like most maps at the time, it is likely to have been originally used as a decorative piece or a diplomatic gift.

Related posts

The recently arrested French paedophile has died in hospital after hanging himself

Indonesia Expat

Who is going to win the UEFA Nations League

Roga Schultz

Ahok Jailed for 2 Years in Blasphemy Case

Sharon Hambali

New Indonesian Immigration Laws Allow Officers Carrying Firearms and Changes in MERP

Indonesia Expat

President Jokowi Grants Amnesty for Baiq Nuril

Indonesia Expat

National Data Centre Hit by Ransomware Attack, Disrupting Public Services

Indonesia Expat