Map. Hand coloured engraved topographical plan of the settlements of New South Wales including Port Jackson, Botany Bay and Broken Bay.
By Aaron Arrowsmith.
Published in London during the Macquarie period, this 1815 version of the Grimes and Flinders map is much rarer than the first version published in 1799. This separately issued map was to form the basis for all mapping of the colony for at least another decade, and its high quality and technical expertise exemplify the great contribution made by the Arrowsmith family to the mapping of Australia.
Description
One of the official British cartographers, the company specialised in the production of large scale general maps and the recording of the latest geographical discoveries, particularly throughout the Pacific area. The 1799 issue of the map had been the first separately issued publication to show the spread of settlement within the fledgling colony. The information was based on a plan prepared for Governor Hunter in 1796 by the Deputy Surveyor General, Charles Grimes. An important feature incorporated on the map was the first accurate charting of the coastline around Port Jackson and the Georges River, undertaken by Flinders after his arrival in the colony in 1795.
Arrowsmith prepared his revised edition “with additions to 1815” in the form of a considerably changed map. The new material included, “A Sketch of Mr Evan’s Route West of the Blue Mountains in Nov. Dec. 1813 and Jan. 1814”. This was the first time that the newly discovered route, signifying the crossing of the Blue Mountains and the ‘breakout’ from the settlement, had been brought to public attention. Even Macquarie himself did not travel over the Blue Mountains until May 1815, and it was a long time before Blaxland published any account of the historic journey.
Additional information
| Date | 1815 |
|---|---|
| Author/Maker | Aaron Arrowsmith |
| Material | Ink, Paper |
