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C1705
A new map of the world according to Wrights alias Mercators projection &c. drawn from the newest and the most exact observations together with a view of the general and coasting trade winds, monsoons or the shifting trade winds with other considerable
Mapmaker:
Large-scale world chart on Mercator’s projection printed on two sheets, by the eminent English cartographer Herman Moll, who had come to London to work as an engraver and later set up on his own account as a map publisher. On … Read Full Description
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Full Title:
A new map of the world according to Wrights alias Mercators projection &c. drawn from the newest and the most exact observations together with a view of the general and coasting trade winds, monsoons or the shifting trade winds with other considerable
Date:
C1705
Mapmaker:
Condition:
Two spots, otherwise in good condition. Folds as issued.
Technique:
Image Size:
925mm
x 540mm
Frame Size:
1127mm
x 910mm
AUTHENTICITY
Genuine antique
dated:
1705
Description:
Large-scale world chart on Mercator’s projection printed on two sheets, by the eminent English cartographer Herman Moll, who had come to London to work as an engraver and later set up on his own account as a map publisher. On either side of the equator is a wide shaded area showing the trade winds and monsoons with a note lower centre that states that ‘the Arrows among the lines shew the Course of those General and Coasting Trade Winds, and the Arrows in the void spaces shew the Course of the Monsoons or Shifting Trade Winds and the Abbreviations Sept. & c. shew the Time of the Year when such Winds blow’. The map features two compass roses, ships and an inset of the North Pole in the top right corner. At the beginning of the eighteenth century, Dutch supremacy in mapmaking was being challenged by the new era of scientific cartography that had been established in France and England by mapmakers such as Sanson, Cassini, Speed, Seller and Thornton. This development in cartography was driven by the expansion of the maritime empires of these two rival nations. Australia is shown according to the discoveries made by Abel Tasman on his first and second voyages 1642-44 and includes the place names of earlier visits by Dirk Hartog 1616 and Jan Cartensz 1623. Also shown are the Trial Islands near present-day Dampier, named after the wreck of the English ship the Trial in 1622. The VOC’s instructions for Tasman’s second voyage were, in part, to chart areas of the South Land ‘yet unknown’ but also to investigate trade opportunities with the inhabitants of New Holland that would benefit the VOC directly. Tasman found it difficult to engage with the Australian Aborigines who often ran away from the Dutch sailors and did not seem interested in the goods that the VOC offered. His unfavourable report of trade opportunities and the lack of visible trade commodities meant that the VOC lost interest in further exploration of New Holland, instead focusing on its commercial activities in the East Indies and the charting of areas where its ships were already active. The Dutch reports of the Australian continent also convinced other nations that the area was of little value and as a result, the continent would remain unchanged on maps until the discovery of the east coast by James Cook some 125 years later. California is shown as a large island.
Hermann Moll (1678 - 1732)
Moll was a Dutch emigre who came to London about 1680 following the Scanian Wars, he first worked as an engraver for Moses Pitt, later setting up his own business and becoming, after the turn of the century, the foremost map publisher in England. As his fame grew he became a well known figure at in the group of Intelligencia who gathered at Jonathon's Coffee House in Exchange Alley or Change Alley. This narrow alleyway connecting shops and coffeehouses in an old neighbourhood of the City of London, served as a convenient shortcut from the Royal Exchange on Cornhill to the Post Office on Lombard Street. Shops once located in Exchange Alley included ship chandlers, makers of navigation instruments such as telescopes, and goldsmiths from Lombardy in Italy. The coffee houses of Exchange Alley, especially Jonathan's and Garraway's, became an early venue for the lively trading of shares and commodities. Moll was able to obtain crucial information from the lively commercial and intellectual scene in the area. Moll was at the forefront of map making during his working life and his maps reflect his ever inquisitive nature.
