The False Sea Of Verazzano
[ History | Maps ]
Other map pages:
[ Locations | Map themes & related | Cartographers ]
[ Return to mythical geography home page ]
In 1523-4, Giovanni da Verazzano sailed along the eastern coast of North America, from Florida to Newfoundland, in the service of Francis I of France, thus becoming the first person to show definitely that the land discovered in the south by the Spanish was connected with the land discovered by the English in the north. Verrazano's voyage was undertaken in order to find a route west from Europe across the Atlantic to the riches of the Orient. In the sixteenth century, the American continent was seen as an impediment on the way to the Far East and much of the early exploration was done in an attempt to find the shortest route from Europe to China. After proving that there was no passage to the Pacific through the Gulf of Mexico, it was hoped that there might be a passage to the north of the Spanish discoveries in Florida. It was such a route to the Pacific that Verazzano was looking for.
Because of the limits of the sailing ships at the time, Verazzano could not simply sail along the coast as it ran to the north and northeast. Instead he had to sail northeast into the Atlantic and then sail back to the northwest (because of this Verazzano missed many features of the coast, such as the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay). Each time Verazzano tacked back, he must have hoped that he would soon find himself sailing in the Pacific Ocean, on his way to the Orient. With this hope firmly in his mind, when Verazzano saw a large body of water across a narrow bit of land on one of his approaches to the coast north of Florida, he jumped to the conclusion that this was the Pacific Ocean. What he in fact had seen was either Pamlico Sound across the Outer Banks of North Carolina or part of Chesapeake Bay. Despite finding more land as he went further north, Verazzano believed he had spotted the long hoped-for passage to China.
The following account appeared in the margin of a letter written Verazzano in 1524:
|
"We called it Annunciato from the day of arrival, where was found an isthmus a mile in width and about 200 long, in which from the ship, was seen the oriental sea between the west and north. Which is the one, without doubt, which goes about the extremity of India, China and Cathay. We navigated along the said isthmus with the continual hope of finding some strait or true promontory at which the land would end toward the north in order to be able to penetrate to those blessed shores of Cathay." |
When Verazzano returned to Europe, this belief was shown in two manuscript maps based on Verazzano's expedition, and so it became widely accepted, for hadn't Verazzano actually been there and seen the Pacific!. This 'false sea of Verazzano' thus began to appear on printed maps of the New World. This belief had considerable impact on the history of exploration in North America, for subsequent expeditions went looking for a passage to the Pacific in the middle latitudes of the continent. One of the goals of Henry Hudson's explorations was to sail through such a passage to the Pacific, and when the original charter for Virginia was given, it included rights to "land throughout from sea to sea west and north-west," and the colonists were instructed to seek a river by which "you shall soonest find the other sea."
The first maps to show the false sea of Verazzano were manuscript maps by Vesconte de Maggiolo in 1527, showing a the sea labeled as "Mare Indicum," and by Verazzano's brother, Girolamo, made in 1529. This latter map clearly showed the sea and included the legend "from this eastern sea you may behold the western sea and there are six miles of land between them." This was followed by other maps, including Sebastian Munster's famous map of North & South American first issued in 1540. Munster's map, with its wide distribution in many editions, probably had more to do with the spread of this cartographic myth than any other map. As late as 1651, John Farrer's map of Virginia indicated that it was only a ten day march from the Atlantic to the Pacific in that region, and it also shows a very short land bridge to the Pacific at the head of the Hudson River. The failure of the English to find the Pacific Ocean anywhere near Virginia soon led to the demise of this cartographic myth.
Sebastian Munster. "Tavola dell' isole nuove, le quali son nominate occidental, & indiane per diversi rispetti." Basle, [1540]-1558. Italian text. 10 x 13 1/4. Woodcut. Very good condition. Burden, 12.
One of the greatest maps of North and South America ever produced, this fascinating woodcut map was first issued by Munster in his Geographia in 1540. Amongst it most salient points:
- This is the first printed map to depict North and South America as separate continents. Prior to this, maps showed discovered parts of North America either as a number separate islands or as connected to Asia. With the publication of Munster's map, North and South America were finally clearly shown as a separate and connected land mass.
- It contains one of the earliest and most obvious depictions of the false sea of Verrazano. In 1523-4, Verrazano sailed from Florida up the east coast to Newfoundland in the service of Francis I of France, thus becoming the first person to show definitely that the land discovered in the south by the Spanish was connected with the land discovered by the English in the north. Verrazano's voyage was a search for a route to the riches of the Orient, for Europeans thought that there must be an easy passage to the Pacific in the area. With this unfounded assumption firmly in mind, Verrazano jumped to the conclusion that he had spotted the Pacific Ocean when he saw a large body of water across a narrow bit of land north of Florida. What he had in fact seen was Pamlico Sound across the Outer Banks of North Carolina, but his statement that he had seen the Pacific across a narrow isthmus was accepted as fact in Europe, and the 'false sea of Verrazano' thus began to appear on maps of the New World, nowhere more graphically than here. It is interesting to note that it was depictions like that in Munster's map, which enjoyed wide circulation, that spread the idea of a passage to the east in the area of North America, which in turn was one of the major impetuses in the further exploration and eventual settlement of North America.
- Other bits of information from early voyages are nicely illustrated, including the recent voyage around the world by Magellan. Not only is the Strait of Magellan, "Fretum Magaliani," shown, as are the Marianas, Magellan's 'Isles of Thieves,' but Magellan's ship, the Victoria, is seen sailing in the Pacific. The explorations in the northeast of North America are evidenced by the name "Fancisca," as well as the correct depiction of Newfoundland, "Cortereal," as a single large island. Even Marco Polo's adventures in the orient are represented, with Japan in an archipelago consisting of exactly 7,448 islands, a 'fact' recorded by Marco Polo. The narrowness of the Pacific Ocean, which causes Japan to appear very close to the western coast of North America, is caused by the ancient belief that the earth was about 2/3rds its actual circumference.
- Other points of interest include the representation of the Yucatan Peninsula as an island, and the depiction of the lake upon which Temistitan, modern Mexico City, was built, as emptying into the Gulf of Mexico. In South America a wonderful vignette shows the existence of cannibals in a rather graphic fashion. The Spanish Flag is seen flying over the West Indies, while the Portuguese Flag is shown off the Brazilian coast, reflecting the Papal division of the New World between the two countries.
For these and many other points of interest, this first map of North and South America is a cornerstone for any collection of American maps; it is one of the great maps in the history of cartography. $7,500
Place Order
Other map pages: [ Locations | Map themes & related | Cartographers ]
To Contact Us; call, write, fax or e-mail to:
8441 Germantown Avenue
Philadelphia, PA 19118 USA
(215) 242-4750 [Phone]
(215) 242-6977 [Fax]
PhilaPrint@PhilaPrintShop.com
©The Philadelphia Print Shop, Ltd. Last updated February 24, 2012
