The Mapping of Antarctica

The

MAPPING of

Antarctica THE MAP HOUSE OF LONDON

The

MAPPING of

Antarctica

THE MAP HOUSE OF LONDON ­Established­1907

54­Beauchamp­Place,­ London,­ SW3­1NY­ Tel:­+44­(0)20­7589­4325­ Email:­maps@themaphouse.com www.themaphouse.com

Our­grateful­thanks­to­Dr­David­Wilson­for­generously­reading­through­ the­proof­and­for­his­many­valuable­suggestions­and­corrections.­ Also­thanks­to­Alicia­Canes­Chved­and­Gail­Morrison­for­editing­the­proof.

The­Map­House­2012 Copyright­Maps­and­Text­©­The­Map­House­2012 Copyright­Scott­Photographs­©­Richard­Kossow All­rights­reserved.­This­book­is­sold­subject­to­the­condition­that­it­shall­not,­by­way­of­trade­or­otherwise,­be­lent, resold,­hired­out,­or­otherwise­circulated­without­the­publisher’s­prior­consent­in­any­form­of­binding­or­cover­other than­that­in­which­it­is­published­and­without­similar­condition­including­this­condition­being­imposed­on­the subsequent­purchaser.­ No­part­of­this­book­may­be­reproduced­in­any­form­or­by­any­electronic­or­mechanical­means,­including­information storage­systems,­without­permission­in­writing­from­the­publisher,­except­by­a­reviewer,­who­may­quote­brief­passages.

First­published­in­Great­Britain­in­2012­by­ The­Map­House 54­Beauchamp­Place London­SW3­1NY ISBN:­978-0-9571497-0-0 Written­by­Jakob­Søndergård­Pedersen­&­Philip­Curtis.

Photography­by­Louie­Fasciolo.

Design­and­production­by­Jamm­Design­Ltd. Printed­and­bound­in­Great­Britain­by­Park­Communications.

Cover­illustration:­Item­1,­p.­6,­7.

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The

MAPPING of

Antarctica By­Jakob­Søndergård­Pedersen­&­Philip­Curtis.

THE MAP HOUSE OF LONDON Established­1907

4

Introduction On­the­evening­of­18th January­1929,­the­inaugural­dinner­of­the­Antarctic­Club­was­held­in the­Café­Royal­in­London.­Gathered­together­from­every­corner­of­the­British­Empire­were­most of­the­principal­surviving­Antarctic­explorers­of­the­“Heroic­Age”.1 As­Sir­Douglas­Mawson looked­round­the­table,­on­the­very­eve­of­his­third­and­final­expedition­to­the­Antarctic,­he would­have­seen­representatives­of­every­major­British­expedition­of­the­last­30­years.­There was­Louis­Bernacchi­of­the­Southern Cross (1899)­with­his­ship-mates­from­the­Discovery (1901);­Reginald­Skelton,­now­Vice-Admiral,­and­Albert­Armitage.­Mawson’s­own­colleagues from­the­Nimrod (1907)­included­Rupert­England­and­Philip­Brocklehurst.­Also­from­the­Nimrod was­the­Polar­veteran­Ernest­Joyce,­one­of­only­two­men­(with­Frank­Wild)­to­be­awarded­the Polar­Medal­with­four­bars.­The­Endurance Expedition­(1914-17),­was­represented­by­Frank Worsley,­Shackleton’s­second-in-command,­and­four­members­of­the­crew­that­had­been­trapped on­Elephant­Island.­ There­was­a­poignant­moment­when­Vice-Admiral­Skelton­proposed­the­toast,­repeated every­year­since,­to­“Those who went to the Antarctic and did not return”.2 In­the­moment’s silence­that­followed,­all­there­would­have­been­acutely­aware­of­old­friends­and­companions who­would­forever­remain­in­the­frozen­wastes.­Robert­Scott,­Edward­Wilson,­“Birdie”­Bowers, Edgar­Evans­and­“Titus”­Oates;­also­Ernest­Shackleton,­buried­on­South­Georgia­and­Mawson’s own­colleagues,­Belgrave­Ninnis­and­Xavier­Mertz,­amongst­others.­ A­number­of­those­present­perhaps­also­took­a­moment­to­consider­with­varying­degrees­of regret­the­passing­of­an­era­of­Antarctic­exploration.­Theirs­had­been­an­age­that­relied­on­the individual­and­collective­determination­and­endurance­of­men­rather­than­the­efficiency­of machines.­The­increased­use­of­planes­for­surveying,­the­boon­of­instant­radio­communication and­the­steady­replacement­of­ponies,­dogs­and­man-hauling­by­motorised­sledges­significantly changed­polar­exploration­as­experienced­by­these­early­Antarctic­pioneers.­­ The­magnificent­achievements­of­these­extraordinary­men­are­illustrated­step­by­painstaking step­ on­ the­ maps­ they­ created,­ along­ with­ their­ triumphs­ and­ disasters.­ They­ graphically demonstrate­the­sheer­scale­of­the­undertaking­to­explore­this­vast,­frozen­continent­and­remain an­evocative­testament­to­what­came­to­be­known­as­the­“Heroic­Age­of­Antarctic­Exploration”.

Left:­The­Last­View­of­the­“Discovery” as­she­left­Lyttelton,­N.Z.,­on­her­South­Polar­voyage,­December­21,­1901.

1­ 2

The­Straits­Times,­26th­January­1929,­p.­11.

See:­The­Age,­Melbourne,­Monday,­January­20th,­1930,­p.­10.

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6

1. Stanford (Edward): The Antarctic Regions, folding­lithographed­map­in­original­printed­colour,­bisected­and­laid-down­in­linen­as­issued, heavily­annotated,­28­x­22in.­(71­x­56cm.),­Edward­Stanford,­London,­1914­or­later.

Printed­by­London’s­leading­map­publisher,­this­attractive­folding­map­sums­up­the­extent­of­the­knowledge­of­Antarctica­shortly­after­the conquest­of­the­South­Pole.­Marked­in­red­are­the­routes­of­Amundsen,­Scott­and­Mawson.

Clearly­chosen­as­the­most­up-to-date­map­commercially­available­on­the­eve­of­the­inaugural­meeting­of­the­Antarctic­Club­at­the­Café­Royal, it­was­passed­round­the­table­and­signed­by­the­attendees.­ The­signatures­are: F.A.Worsley­(Endurance 1914,­Quest 1921) J.M.Wordie­(Endurance 1914) R.W.James­(Endurance 1914) A.H.Macklin­(Endurance 1914,­Quest 1921) John­Davis­(Nimrod 1907,­Aurora 1911) C.S.Wright­(Terra Nova 1910) F.E.Smith­(Expert­on­magnetism­and­guest­of­C.S.Wright) A.Horton­(Terra Nova 1910) W.K.Chaplin­(Capt.)

J.Hamilton­Blair­(Aurora 1911) Alfred­J.Hodgeman­(Aurora 1911) Apsley­Cherry-Garrard­(Terra Nova 1910) G.Murray­Levick­(Aurora 1911)

Sir­Douglas­Mawson­(Nimrod 1907,­Aurora 1911) L.C.Bernacchi­(Southern Cross 1899,­Discovery 1901) W.W.Archer­(Terra Nova 1910) Rupert­England­(Morning 1902,­Nimrod 1907) Philip­Brocklehurst­(Nimrod 1907) W.L.Heald­(Terra Nova 1910) R.W.Skelton­(Discovery 1901) Albert­Armitage­(Discovery 1901) Will­Colbeck­(Morning 1902)­ L.Rickinson­(Endurance 1914) J.H.Mather­(Terra Nova 1910) Ernest­Joyce­(Discovery 1901,­Nimrod 1907,­ Aurora 1910,­Aurora 1914)

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8

The Age

of The

“TerrA AusTrAlIs IncognITA”

The­belief­in­the­existence­of­a­“Great­Southern­Continent”­dates­back­to­the­very­beginning­of­classical geography­where­it­derived­from­the­concept­of­the­symmetry­of­nature.­The­scientists­of­ancient­Greece and­Rome­thought­that­the­large­known­landmasses­of­the­Northern­Hemisphere­had­to­be­balanced­in­ the­south.­ The­size­of­the­theoretical­continent­on­maps­reached­its­greatest­extent­in­the­16th century,­regularly making­up­a­quarter­of­the­world’s­landmass.­It­shrunk­throughout­the­17th century­as­explorers­ventured ever­further­into­the­Southern­Seas­without­encountering­land.­A­century­later­it­began­to­inflate­again, driven­now­by­wishful­thinking,­particularly­by­the­French­and­English­geographers,­and­fuelled­by­their desire­for­a­great­fertile­southern­continent­rich­in­resources­to­rival­those­of­the­New­World.­ It­was­James­Cook’s­voyage­of­1772-75­which­finally­destroyed­the­dream­of­a­vast,­inhabited­and prosperous­“Terra­Australis­Incognita”­and­ushered­in­the­new­age­of­South­Polar­exploration.

2. Buache (Philippe): Chart of the Antarctic Polar Circle,­copper-engraved­map,­9­x­8­in.­(22­x­20­cm.), Gentlemen’s­Magazine,­1763.

Elegant­hemisphere­map­that­shows­two­large­landmasses,­the­“Antarctic­Pole”,­consisting­of­“Land­yet Undiscovered”­and­“The­Great­Reservoir­from­the­Frozen­Northern­Sea­or­Siberia”.­The­belief­in­a­fertile southern­continent­is­evident,­but­with­the­assumption­of­a­great­frozen­sea­at­the­South­Pole,­thereby­mirroring the­North­Pole,­is­noted­on­the­map­as­well.­It­includes­references­to­earlier­cartographers,­such­as­Abraham Ortelius­and­Pieter­van­den­Keere,­and­their­ideas­about­the­southern­continent,­and­the­discoveries­by­Dr. Edmund­Halley.­The­tracks­of­the­ships­St. Louis in­1708,­the­Eagle and­Marie in­1738,­as­well­as­the­Spanish ship­Lion in­1756­into­the­South­Seas­are­marked.­Based­on­the­most­recent­discoveries­Buache­mapped­a conjectural­“coast according to the New Plan”,­a­coast-line­that­was­to­move­significantly­during­the­next 150­years.­This­reduced­English­version­of­Buache’s­map,­itself­originally­derived­from­Guillaume­de­l’Isle3 was­published­in­the­Gentleman’s­Magazine.­

3

Tooley,­1985,­p.­xxxvi.

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Yves de Kerguelen 1777 3. Robert de Vaugondy (Didier): Hémisphère Austral ou Antarctique,­copper-engraved­map,­24­x­25­in.

(61­x­66­cm.),­Sr.­de­Vaugondy,­Paris,­1777.

It­is­a­rare,­separately­published­map­that­represents­the­last­remnants­of­the­French­dream­of­a­huge­southern continent­-­the­“Indes­Meridionales”.­It­was­purported­to­be­first­described­by­Binot­Paulmier,­Sieur­de Gonneville,­at­the­beginning­of­the­16th­century.­In­the­next­200­years,­the­notional­and­mobile­continent­was to­shrink­and­swell­depending­on­the­prevailing­cartographic­fashions.­In­England,­Alexander­Dalrymple,­who in­1795­was­to­become­the­Admiralty’s­first­Hydrographer,­maintained­that­the­continent­was­of­a­greater extent­than­the­whole­“civilised”­part­of­Asia,­from­Turkey­eastwards­to­the­extremity­of­China.­ In­February­1772,­Yves­de­Kerguelen­with­two­ships,­the Fortune and­the­Gros-Ventre,­observed­mist-shrouded land­at­Latitude­50˚S­which­he­named­South­France.­Unable­to­land­on­the­bleak­and­unforgiving­coast,­he sailed­back­to­France­declaring­that­he­had­found­a­veritable­Eden­in­the­South­Seas.­Inspired­by­the­promise of­ wealth­ and­ compliant,­ noble­ savages,­ Louis­ XV­ dispatched­ another­ expedition­ of­ three­ ships­ under Kerguelen,­which­returned­to­the­island­in­December­of­the­same­year.4 The­map­was­engraved­between­the­first­and­second­voyages­and­reflects­the­optimism­of­the­initial­reports.

The­cartographic­assumptions­are­based­on­Dalrymple’s­elaborate­theories.­It­superimposes­the­antipodes­of European­capitals­to­demonstrate­that­France’s­speculative­new­colony­lay­on­the­equivalent­latitude­as­Paris.­ In­the­context­of­the­Antarctic,­the­importance­of­the­map­rests­on­the­discoveries­of­Kerguelen.­The­tip­of Kerguelen­Island­is­mapped,­accompanied­by­a­text­mentioning­the­date­of­the­discovery.­ This­is­the­second­and­more­important­of­the­two­French­editions­of­the­map­now­showing­the­tracks­of­James Cook­and­Tobias­Furneaux­with­a­note­engraved­at­foot:­“Observations­de­1777”.5 The­subsequent­re-naming­of­South­France­as­the­Land­of­Desolation,­and­the­disgrace­and­imprisonment­of Kerguelen­in­the­Bastille­by­a­disappointed­Louis­XVI,­reflected­the­barren­reality­of­what­are­now­called­the Iles­Kerguelen.6

4 5 6

Fogg,­1992,­p.­16.

Tooley,­1985,­p.­xxxvii.

During­the­French­Revolution,­Kerguelen­was­regarded­as­a­victim­of­the­Ancien­Régime­and­was­released­from­prison,­ restored­to­his­position­and­died­a­Rear-Admiral­in­1797.

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11

James cook and the second circumnavigation 1772-1775

“I firmly believe that there is a tract of land near the pole, which is the source of most of the ice which is spread over this vast Southern Ocean.”7 After­ Captain­ James­ Cook’s­ first­ circumnavigation­ of­ the­ globe,­ the­ issue­ of­ the­Terra­Australis Incognita­had­still­not­been­resolved.­Cook­was­therefore­dispatched­by­the­Admiralty­to­finally­prove­or disprove­the­existence­of­this­elusive­landmass.­ The­ship­Resolution,­commanded­by­Cook,­and­the­Adventure,­under­Tobias­Furneaux­left­Plymouth on­July­13th 1772.8 While­revictualling­at­the­Cape­of­Good­Hope,­Cook­received­news­of­the­earlier Kerguelen­expedition,­an­enterprise­founded­on­speculation­and­irrational­hope,­the­very­opposite­in character­to­his­own.­Having­set­out­from­Cape­Town­in­November­1772,­on­the­17th January­1773,9 the­Resolution and­Adventure became­the­first­ships­in­recorded­history­to­penetrate­the­Antarctic­Polar Circle.­Cook,­while­repeatedly­forced­back­by­“Firm Fields and vast Mountains of Ice”10,­got­within­80 miles­of­the­continent­at­latitude­67°15’S.­They­became­separated­in­dense­fog­and­only­met­up­again­at Ship­Cove­in­Queen­Charlotte­Sound­on­the­south­side­of­Cook­Strait,­New­Zealand­on­18th May­1773.11 In­his­epic­three­year­circumnavigation­of­the­South­Pole,­Cook­fixed­the­positions­of­a­number­of imprecisely­ placed­ islands­ and­ disproved­ the­ existence­ of­ many­ others.­ While­ the­ latter­ part­ of­ the expedition­ took­ place­ in­ the­ Pacific,­ Cook­ managed­ to­ try­ for­ the­ Antarctic­ at­ the­ end­ of­ the circumnavigation­during­the­austral­summer.­ The­first­time­the­expedition­crossed­the­Antarctic­Circle­was­in­November­1773,­and­the­second­in December­of­the­same­year.­Once­more­they­were­forced­to­turn­back,­since­the­ship­was­surrounded­by ice­and­Cook­himself­was­suffering­from­gall-bladder­problems.­ While­the­Resolution continued­its­exploration­the­two­ships­became­separated­once­more,­and­in­1774, the­ Adventure returned­ to­ England,­ making­ its­ commander,­ Tobias­ Furneaux,­ the­ first­ person­ to circumnavigate­the­globe­in­both­directions.12 Cook’s­third­and­final­crossing­of­the­Antarctic­Circle­happened­on­30th January­177413,­when­the­ship reached­latitude­71°10’S,­longitude­106°30’W,­east­of­the­Palmer­Peninsula,­before­the­pack­ice­once­more became­impenetrable.14 The­Resolution arrived­back­in­England­on­the­29th July­177515 and­the­southerly latitude­achieved­remained­unmatched­for­nearly­half­a­century.­­ 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15

See:­Journals­of­Captain­James­Cook,­6th­February­1775.

Fogg,­1992,­p.­22.

Murray,­1898,­p.­541.

As­noted­on­the­map.

Murray,­1898,­p.­541.

He­had­previously­been­a­second­lieutenant­of­the­HMS Dolphin on­Captain­Samuel­Wallis’­voyage­around­the­globe­in­1766-68.

Fogg,­1992,­p.­22.

Murray,­1898,­p.­542.

Fogg,­1992,­p.­29.

12

4. Bowen (Thomas): A Map of the South Pole, with the Track of his Majesty’s sloop Resolution in Search of a Southern Continent,­copper-engraved­map­with­hand-colour,­9­x­9­in.­(22­x­23­cm.),­Gentleman’s Magazine,­London,­1776 The­first­published­map­to­show­the­route­taken­by­Cook­during­his­circumnavigation­in­the­South­Seas.­It pre-dates­the­official­map­by­one­year,­and­also­refers­to­the­pack­ice­and­already­known­landmasses,­but­in­a much­more­basic­manner.­The­South­Polar­Circle­is­drawn­in­thick­red­outline­and­Cook’s­three­crossings­of it­are­emphasized.

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5. Cook (James): A Chart of the Southern Hemisphere, copper-engraved­map,­22­x­23in.­(56­x­58cm.), lightly rubbed and soiled along folds, W.Strahan­&­T.Cadell,­London,­1777.­ Issued­in­the­official­report­of­Cook’s­Second­Voyage­towards­the­South­Pole,­this­is­the­fundamental­map­of the­Southern­Ocean­marking­the­beginning­of­true­Antarctic­discovery.­ It­marks­the­tracks­of­the­most­important­explorers­in­the­South­Seas,­from­Abel­Tasman­in­1642­to­Cook­& Furneaux­in­1773-4­and­the­ice­fields­that­barred­their­passage­at­different­points.­Notes­on­the­map­read: “Land said to be discovered by M. De Kergeulen in Feb 1772”­and­“Desert Isles said to be discovered by M. Marion in Jan 1772”.­

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