Carte de la Route des Corvettes L’Astrolabe et la Zelee a travers le Detroit de Torres.

Rare chart of Dumont D’Urville’s passage through Torres Strait made during his third and final voyage, with an inset of, Plan du Canal Mauvais.

After exploring the southern regions Dumont D’Urville the ships sailed to the Pacific visiting many of the islands, Singapore, Batavia, and reached Hobart at the end of 1839. After a short period of rest in Hobart the ships headed south again on January 1, 1840, this time reaching about 64°S and found themselves suddenly surrounded by icebergs. On January 19, land was sighted, it was completely covered with snow so high it was impossible to see the summit. D’Urville named the coast, Terre Adelie after his wife. The expedition had established the approximate position of the magnetic pole and d’Urville felt that their task had been accomplished and left Antarctica and headed for New Zealand.

The maps and views were published in the official accounts of the voyage and are among the finest ever produced of Antarctica and intended to reflect France’s rightful place on the international stage.

Embossed blind stamp “Gide Editeur Paris” denoting that is from the original edition of “Voyage au Pole Sud”.

Collections:
National Library Australia: Bib ID 3674301

References:
Brosse, J. Great Voyages of Exploration. The Golden Age of Discovery in the Pacific. Sydney 1983 pp.186-194.
Ferguson, J. A. Bibliography of Australia Volumes 1-8, Canberra 1976 3184.