Name/TitleTypus Orbis Terrarum
About this objectAbraham Ortelius was a Flemish cartographer from Antwerp, then part of the Habsburg ruled seventeen provinces. In 1575 he was appointed geographer to the King of Spain, Philip II. Ortelius gained fame from the publication of his Theatrum Orbis Terrarum in the 1570’s, recognised as the first modern Atlas. This example is Ortelius’s third and last world map, dated 1587 although this example is from the 1592 edition.
Four medallions decorate each corner and feature quotes by the classical Roman statesmen Cicero and Seneca. The Solomon Islands are marked for the first time. The land of Beach is shown and above it lies the land of Java Major, the name given by Marco Polo to the island of Java. Like the influential mapmaker Plancius, Ortelius shows the landmass Terra Sept Emtrionalis Incognita at the north pole separated by narrow straits from the continents of Europe, Asia and North America.
New Guinea is shown as an island, although Ortelius includes a note at lower left below the word Noua Guinea stating, ‘[New Guinea, recently discovered. Whether this is an island or part of the Southern continent is uncertain]’. In the lower right of the map in the provinces of Beach is written: ‘[These regions are very extended, as can be seen in the writings of Paulus Venetus and the travels of Ludovicus Vartomannus]’.
MakerAbraham Ortelius - Cartographer
Maker RoleCartographer
Maker RoleEngraver
Date Made1589
Period16th century
Medium and MaterialsPaper and ink
TechniqueEngraving
Measurements358mm x 492mm
Object TypeMaps and Charts
Object numberSF000957
Copyright Licence
Attribution - Non-commercial - No Derivatives (cc)
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The mug is decorated with an underglaze and a blue transfer print. On the body, it is titled ‘Emigrants to Australia’. This type of body and glaze was discontinued by 1840. Comparison of the handle shape and the profile of the foot, point to the attribution of manufacture by the Davenport Factory.
Delta was a ship-rigged vessel with two decks and three masts. It was built in Dordrecht, Netherlands in 1839 at the shipyard of Jan Schouten and registered in the same port. Its hull was constructed of oak and sheathed in ‘yellow metal’. Delta was owned by H. van der Sande at the time of its loss and was engaged as a cargo trader.
The Delta carried 29 crew and passengers, while sailing from Melbourne to Batavia in ballast when wrecked at Kenn Reefs on 30 May 1854 whilst under the command of Captain J.G. Kunst. This vessel loss supports the pattern of shipwrecks located on a well-travelled shipping route that was poorly charted until the mid-nineteenth century. The crew of the Delta could see four other shipwrecks at Kenn Reefs at the time of their vessel’s loss.
Important image of a ship associated with Matthew Flinders, that would shortly become one of the most famous early shipwrecks in eastern Australian waters. This is a fine ship’s portrait, by one of the great exponents of the art