The First Discovery of Australia and New Guinea | Page 8

the Amberno, was discovered and was named the _S. Augustino_, and formal possession was taken in the name of the King of Spain.
CHAPTER V.
THE FIRST MAP OF NEW GUINEA.
Had the Portuguese and Spanish known the map of New Guinea as we know it nowadays they would, no doubt, have described it as a Guinea fowl, Bird of Paradise or some such creature, as delineated above, in the same way as they described Java and other islands in these seas.*
[* Celebes was likened to a spider, Ceram to a caterpillar, etc., etc.]
The map of Nova Guinea, shows, however, that their ideas were like all original ideas concerning shapes of countries--imperfect.
Nevertheless, some of the principal features of the Portuguese and Spanish discoveries in Papuas and New Guinea, up to the year 1545, are clearly discernible.*
[* The original Portuguese and Spanish documents that were used in the compilation of this map have been lost or have not yet come to light. Our copy dates from the year 1600.]
It will be noticed that Gilolo is now placed in its correct position, twenty degrees to the west of where it was placed before in Ribero's map.
It is now in the Portuguese sphere where it should be.
The Portuguese discoveries in New Guinea occupy what might be described as the fowl's head and neck. They come under the name of OS PAPUAS, and the islands where Menezes is said to have sojourned--_hic hibernavit Georg de Menezes_--in the year 1526.
The three nameless large islands, between Os Papuas and Nova Guinea represent, no doubt, the Misory Islands and Jobi of modern charts.
The Aru Islands are also charted, and the Tenimber or Timor Laut group is indicated (although it bears no name) as having been the sojourn of Martin Alfonso de Melo,* a Portuguese navigator, whose name has not been otherwise recorded, as far as I know, in the history of maritime discovery in these parts.
[* Martin afonso de mela, on the chart.]
SPANISH SPHERE.
The Spanish portion commemorates the expedition of Inigo Ortiz de Retez with Gaspar Rico, in the San Juan, in the year 1545; some of the names being the _Rio de S. Augustino_; the island of Ortiz, _I de Arti_; the port of Gaspar Rico and the _I. S. Juan_, named after their little ship; the cape named Ancon de la Natividad de Nustra Siniora, being the term of their voyage which, according to Juan Gaetan, one of Villalobos' pilots, who wrote a description of it, extended to six or seven degrees of south latitude, must represent the modern Cape King William, or thereabouts.
CHAPTER VI.
JAVE-LA-GRANDE. THE FIRST MAP OF AUSTRALIA.
The maps that I am going to describe in this chapter are beautiful specimens of medieval work; they are, however, somewhat startling, for they reveal, in a most unexpected and sudden manner, nearly the whole of the coasts of Australia discovered, yet, without any narrative of voyage to prepare us for the fact.
They stand alone, therefore, as the most important documents hitherto come to light bearing on the early discovery and mapping of Australia.
They belong to a type of manuscript Lusitano-French, or Lusitano-Spanish planispheres, which is represented by several specimens, all of which are copies from a prototype which has either been destroyed or has not yet been found.
As the original model, or prototype, is of a date anterior to 1536, they may be considered collectively notwithstanding the apparent later date of some of them.*
[* Desliens' bears the date 1566; see pages 70-71.]
The Australian portion, or Jave-la-Grande, of the oldest one, given here first, is taken from a large chart of the world, on a plane scale, painted on vellum, 8ft. 2in. by 3ft. 10in., highly ornamented with figures, etc., and with the names in French.
At the upper corner, on the left hand, is a shield of the arms of France, with the collar of St. Michael; and on the right, another shield of France and Dauphiny, quarterly. It was probably executed in the time of Francis I. of France, for his son, the Dauphin, afterwards Henry II.; hence, this chart has sometimes been called the "Dauphin Chart."*
[* Another of these planispheres, belonging to the same French School of Cartography, was presented to Henry II. of France. About that time a movement was set on foot for the colonisation of the Great Southern Continent, or Jave-la-Grande. The promotors failed in their endeavours, and one of them went to England with the hopes of better success; he also failed in his efforts, and the great colonising scheme was abandoned.]
This chart formerly belonged to Edward Harley, Earl of Oxford and one of the principal Lords of the Admiralty, after whose death it was taken away by one of his servants. It. was subsequently purchased by Sir Joseph Banks, Bart., and presented by him to the British Museum in 1790.
Copies of this