1744 Bowen and Cowley Map of the Galapagos Islands

The earliest obtainable specific map of the Galapagos Islands.

This is one of the earliest obtainable specific maps of the Galapagos Islands. The map tentatively covers the islands and is attributed to Captain William Ambrose Cowley. The map claims that Cowley discovered the islands in 1683, but in fact they were know to the Spanish as early as 1535. Nonetheless, they were not fully described until the English ship, Bachelor's Delight, landed on the islands in 1683. The crew consisted of a number of august personages including William Dampier, Lionel Wafer, Ambrose Cowley and Edward Davis. It was during this visit that Cowley laid down the cartography seen here. Although not exceptionally accurate, the basic outline of most of the islands is identifiable. Cowley has here named the islands in an attempt to flatter British nobility, Islan Fernandia is here Narborough Island, Isla Isabela is Due of Albemarle Island, Isla Santiago is King James Island (and in fact, Santiago is a Spanish form of James), Isla Santa Cruz is here the Duke of Norfolk Island, etc.

Despite the general inaccuracy of Cowley's map, it was the best available map of the Galapagos Islands and remained so for nearly one hundred years until 1798 when Aaron Arrowsmith and James Colnett published their map. Of course the Galapagos Islands grew large on the world stage after Charles Darwin's 1835 visit on the HMS Beagle led to his detailed descriptions of the remarkable flora and fauna to be found there. It was only after this voyage that Captain Robert FtizRoy and the British Admiralty published a truly accurate map of the islands.

Below the map proper a text blog describing the naming of the islands and offering an anecdote regarding the privateer Woodes Rogers criticism of Edward Davis' account of the islands. Apparently Rogers was unable to find water despite the success of other navigators.

This map was drawn and engraved by Emmanuel Bowen and published in John Harris's Navigantium Atque Itinerantium Bibliotheca… in 1744.

Cartographer

Emanuel Bowen (1694 - May 8, 1767) was a Welsh cartographer, map engraver, and publisher active in London during the first half and middle of the 18th century. Born at Talley, Carmarthenshire, he was apprenticed in 1709 to the London engraver and globe-maker Charles Price, beginning a career that combined the compilation of geographical information with copperplate engraving for booksellers and map publishers. His early work included maps for an Atlas of the World issued in 1717, followed by Britannia Depicta; or, Ogilby Improv'd (1720), prepared with John Owen, which brought together reduced road-strip maps, county maps, and historical and heraldic information in a portable volume. In 1729, Bowen published a subscription-funded map of South Wales, substantially improving the region's cartographic representation; the map's geographical information subsequently informed his Welsh county maps. After working at several London addresses, he established workshops in Aldersgate, Smithfield, and Clerkenwell, producing maps extensively for other publishers rather than relying on a prominent retail shop. His international cartography included maps for A Complete System of Geography (1744 - 1747), the 1744-48 edition of Navigantium atque itinerantium bibliotheca, and A Complete Atlas (1752). He became geographer to George II around 1747. Among his apprentices were Thomas Kitchin (1719 - 1784), who married Bowen's daughter Sarah in 1739, and Thomas Jefferys (1719 - 1771), apprenticed in 1735. With Kitchin, Bowen produced the county maps issued between 1749 and 1760 that formed The Large English Atlas; their collaboration continued in The Royal English Atlas around 1763. His maps characteristically combined detailed geographical engraving and ornamental cartouches with extensive historical, economic, and topographical annotations. Despite his substantial output and royal appointment, Bowen died in reduced circumstances in 1767. His son and fellow engraver, Thomas Bowen (d. 1790), continued his cartographic work, including Atlas Anglicanus (1767 - 1768), which was completed and issued after Emanuel's death.   Further Details...

Source

Harris, J., Navigantium Atque Itinerantium Bibliotheca… (London: T. Woodward) 1744.    

Condition

Very good. Minor expert repair lower margin. Blank on verso.

References

OCLC 677987838. Shirley (BL Atlases) G.HARR-1a #3.