Carte des deux Regions Polaires….

Rare, hand coloured edition of this scarce c.18th double hemisphere polar projection with the tracks of famous explorers including; Furneaux, Halley, Tasman,  Marion and Cook.

The tracks of Cook’s are those of his second voyage 1773-1775 which Cook dispelled the myth of the landmass known as, Terra Australia Incognita. Cook attempted another search for the Great Southern Continent (November 1773), with the Resolution crossing the Antarctic Circle on 20th December 1773. However, the ice and cold soon forced him to turn north again and he made another search in the central Pacific for the Great Southern Continent. On 17 January 1774 he turned south again, crossing the Antarctic Circle for the second time and then again for a third time 26 January 1774.

There is an unusual Northwest Passage shown from Hudson Bay via Wager Inlet into la Grand. Eau des Sauvages, farther down into L. de Fonte and into to the Pacific. There are many ice flows or icebergs shown in both poles.