"Mappe-Monde", Dampier, William (Capt.)

William Dampier (baptized 1651-1715) was a buccaneer (pirate) and sea captain. He was the first Englishman to explore parts of New Holland and New Guinea, and was the first man to circumnavigate the world three times.
In the 1670s he crewed with buccaneers on the Spanish Main of Central America, which eventually led to his first circumnavigation. On the ship Cygnet, following Pacific-spanning raids that included the East Indies, Manila, and the Spice Islands, Dampier's ship was beached on the northwest coast of Australia in 1688. Waiting for repairs, his scientific interest surfaced as he made notes and drawings on the local fauna and flora. Following three years of further adventures he returned to England. In 1697 he published his experiences in A New Voyage. Described as one of the greatest tales of adventure and exploration ever written, the book was published in several languages. It is reported that Captain Cook used Dampier's nautical observations on his voyages, and Charles Darwin found his books so useful that he took them aboard the Beagle.

This striking double-hemisphere world map traces the route of explorer William Dampier across the globe. It shows California as an island, with the Strait of Anian appearing to the north. The only other details in what would become the United States are a few unnamed rivers and three large place names: Virginie and Floride in the southeast, and N. Mexique in the southwest. In between Japan and the vague northwestern coast of North America is Terre de la Compagnie. New Guinea is attached to an Australia with incomplete borders, while New Zealand is represented as just a single unfinished coastline. From the French edition of Dampier's New Voyage Round the World.

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Condition: B+

A dark impression on a clean sheet which has been trimmed past the neatline at top left. There is a faint damp stain at top left and a short binding tear at lower right that has been closed on verso with archival materials.