because text and^charts surpassed everything in its field available in Europe. The
volume of production of Van Keulen has been larger than that of any other publisher
in the 17th Century.
In his own country Van Keulen in the beginning only endured competition from
Johannes Loots. His substantial series of some one hundred charts on the Mercator
projection, Coming irjto existence in the years 1695-1698 contained much material
which was better than the charts in Van Keulen's Zee-Fakkel. Loots, however, never
published an original pilot guide with text and the fate of his work has been the same
as that of so many other products which are in fact better than those of the
competitor: a large part of his best charts were bought in 1707 by Gerard van Keulen.
After 1726, the year Gerard van Keulen died, the pilot guide production of the
Huis van Keulen' diminished greatly in quality as well as in quantity. The spectacular
publication of part six of the Zee-Fakkel in 1753 did not accomplish to bring any
change in this Situation. Within the fairly closed-knit circle of the owners of the United
East India Company, Van Keulen's charts were still held in respect, although with an
East India Company in decline, this does not mean much. In the second half of the
18th Century, Amsterdam was not considered to be the centre of hydrographic
charting of the world seas any more. The hydrographic bureaus of the British and the
French navies had taken over this position.
The number of various charts which were still published by the 'Huis van Keulen' in
the 19th Century was considerable. With these charts, which were mainly compiled
from British and French Originals, the demands of the Dutch merchant fleet and the
navy could largely be covered, until the Hydrographic Service of the Dutch navy took
over the hydrographic charting.
For the development of the history of maritime cartography in general, the period
of the 'Huis Van Keulen' has been unique, because it is here.that the publication of
hydrographic charts of extra-European waters took place for the first time.
It is important to observe that Van Keulen's 17th and 18th Century hydrographic
Charts were made by the mariners of the old merchant fleet. I.e. the soundings, the
determination of positions of islands, bays, shallows etc. and the data about currents,
low and high tide, courses and distances were gathered over the years by the skippers,
pilots and navigators at sea from their own observations. From these data the texts
with sailing directions and the charts were compiled. The original hand-made
manuscript charts were cut in copper by experienced engravers and sold as loose sheets
or bound in atlases. Often, these prints were later coloured by hand.
Only at the end of the 18th Century, did the British and French navies commence
to execute the hydrographic charting by for this task especially outfitted vessels. In
the first half of the 19th Century the Dutch Navy followed this same method. The
world-wide spheres of interest of the British navy lead the Admiralty in the 19th
Century to chart and publish hydrographic charts of the entire World, also for the
merchant fleet. This Situation existed already in the 17th Century in Amsterdam,
where although not the Navy, but the merchant vessels of the Companies looked after
the charting. What the Charts of the Admiralty mean to present-day world shipping,
the Zee-Fakkel of Van Keulen represented in the years around 1700.
Theatrum Orbis Terrarum Ltd. has decided to publish the edition, in six parts
(bound in 3 volumes) in complete facsimile, rendering every line, chart and sailing
direction exactly as in the original edition. In order to make the work more useful to a
wider circle of students and bibliophiles the Publishers decided to include, at the end
292 ts
K.N.A.G. Geograßxch Tijdschrift VI (1972) Nr. 3
