1776 De L'Isle / Santini Map of North America and the Arctic (Sea of the West)

The 1776 Francois Santini Venice edition of Joseph Nicolas De l'Isle's extraordinary 1752 map of North America, Siberia, the Arctic, and the North Pacific. The map is a study in contrasts, setting J. N. De L'Isle's accurate mapping of the Asian northeast based on data absconded from the Russian 'Academy of Sciences', against J. N. Buache's speculations on the feasibility of a Northwest Passage. Among other points, this map is significant for reviving the 'Sea of the West' hypothesis, and must be considered one of the most influential maps of the region issued in the mid-18th century.

A Map Full of Real and Fake History

When Joseph-Nicholas de De L'Isle, younger brother of the better-known Guillaume De L'Isle, returned from his tenure at Russian Tzar Peter the Great's Academy of Sciences, he published a compilation of secret cartographic data obtained from previously unknown Russian expeditions to Kamchatka and the coast of Siberia. These seminal explorations included the discoveries of Aleksei Ilyich Chirikov (Tchirikow), Nicholas de Frondat, and Vitus Bering, among others. De L'Isle produced a groundbreaking and largely accurate mapping of the peninsula of Kamchatka and the coast of northeast Asia, which he presented in manuscript form to the Paris Royal Académie des Sciences on April 8, 1750. This date appears on all editions of the map; however, it was not printed in its first edition until 1752. There were numerous subsequent issues, this one by the Italian publisher Santini, being the last.

Buache and the Sea of the West

De L'Isle contracted J. N. Buache to complete the North American part of the map. Bauche was a prominent cartographic figure due to his introduction of hachures for displaying elevation on a two-dimensional plane. Buache used the mythical voyages of Admiral de Fonte, Martin Aguilar, and Juan de Fuca as his cartographic source material. The two sides of this map, therefore, could not be more heavily contrasted, for the mapping of Asia is impressively accurate, whereas the mapping of North America is almost entirely fantastical. This map shows the 'Sea of the West' as well as the series of lakes, rivers, and canals heading eastward toward the Baffin and Hudson bays that were purportedly first identified by de Fonte. These include Lac de Fonte, Lac Belle, and Lac de Valasco.

The Tale of Admiral de Fonte

The de Fonte legend first appeared in a 1706 English publication entitled Memoirs of the Curious. This short-lived magazine published a previously unknown account by a supposed Spanish Admiral named Bartholomew de Fonte. De Fonte is said to have sailed up the Pacific coast of North America in 1640. On this voyage, he purportedly discovered a series of gigantic lakes, seas, and rivers heading eastward from the Pacific towards Hudson Bay. The de Fonte story relates how, on one of these great inland lakes, he met with a westward-bound ship from Boston that must have come through the Northwest Passage. Today, based upon inaccuracies and falsities, we know the entire de Fonte article to have been a fabrication; however, it set 18th-century society afire with speculation that a Northwest Passage must indeed exist. Even such luminaries as Benjamin Franklin wrote long defenses of de Fonte. Our map offers an uncommon variant on the de Fonte passage, positioning its western entrada well to the north to accommodate the Sea of the West, and situating its outlet at Baffin rather than Hudson Bay.

A Closer Look

By far the most interesting aspects of this map deal with de L'Isle and Buache's treatment of the largely unexplored Pacific Northwest. A magnificent sea, called the Sea of the West or in this case the Baye de L'Ouest, occupies the greater part of the northwestern part of the continent. This body of water, alternatively called the Sea of the West or Mer de l'Ouest, was speculated by Philippe Buache and De l'Isle in the early 18th century based upon wishful thinking, American Indian stories, and the somewhat questionable 16th century explorations of Juan de Fuca - themselves possibly an attempt by the known pilot de Fuca to lay claim to suppressed information associated with Drake's voyages. Here Buache gives the Mer de l'Ouest its fullest expression. However, he specifically does not connect it to either the factual network of lakes and rivers extending westward from the Hudson Bay or to the speculative De Fonte network just to the north.

On the opposite side of the map, just to the east of Kamchatka there is an unusual body of land reminiscent of the Muller Peninsula, postulated around this time based on sightings of the Aleutian archipelago and their misinterpretation as a single land mass. This supposed island bears a significant resemblance to Gamaland or Compagnie Land as imagined by Sanson c. 1705. A note at the very edge of this land mass claims that it was seen in 1741, suggesting either Vitus Bering or Alexei Chirikov. Both did search for Gama or Compagnie Land in this year without significant success. Curiously, both Gamaland, the supposed discovery of explorer Jean de Gama, and Compagnie are also illustrated, well reduced over Sanson's model, just to the east of a malformed Yedo (Yeco) or modern-day Hokkaido. In actuality, both Gama and Compagnie, as presented here, reflect preliminary sightings of the Japanese Kuril Islands in 1643 by the Dutch navigators Maerten de Vries and Cornelis Jansz Coen. Vries and Coen were searching for Juan de Gama's discovery of an island rich with silver and other precious metals.

Along the base of the map, the Acapulco to Manila trade route is illustrated according to records dating to the British Baron George Anson's capture of the Spanish treasure galleon Nuestra Senora de Covadonga. The galleon, taken off Cape Espiritu Santo in 1743, was loaded with silver bullion and, more importantly, charts and maps detailing the routes between Mexico and the Far East used by the Spanish for over 200 years. Knowledge of this route enabled the British navy to disrupt Spanish trade in the Pacific and thus weaken its stranglehold on the Americas. Upon his return to England, Anson was hailed as a national hero and made immensely wealthy by his share of the Nuestra's treasure. The impact Anson's exposure of the secret Acapulco - Manila route on the global economy is emphasized in its inclusion in this French map.

Emphasizing French Interests

A careful examination reveals de L'Isle's political agenda through his carto-advocacy for French interests. Here, the sprawling territory of Louisiana stretches from the Rio Grande, inclusive of then Spanish Texas, eastwards as far as the Apalaches (Appalachian Mountains). Frances's northern Territories, 'Canada ou Nouvelle France,' extend southwards as far as the Illinois River and eastward to the Appalachian Mountains, including all five Great Lakes, the northern Hudson Valley, and Lake Champlain. This political configuration is interesting when considered within the context of the thriving fur trade. Here, France dominates the fur-rich northern part of the continent, and the Mississippi River, firmly located in the heart of Louisiana, offers easy access to the French port of New Orleans and a route to French markets in Europe. Moreover, it gives preference for French possession of the as yet undiscovered potential of a Northwest Passage either through de Fonte routes or through the Sea of the West to France.

Publication History

The present example, by Santini, was issued in Venice for Francois Santini and Joseph Remondini 1776 reissue of De L'Isle's iconic Atlas universel. We note two examples cataloged in OCLC: Birmingham Public Library and the University of British Columbia.