British Admiralty : Persian Gulf Western Sheet
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Cartographer:
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British Admiralty
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Title:
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Persian Gulf Western Sheet
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Date:
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1913
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Published:
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London
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Width:
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25 inches / 64 cm
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Height:
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38 inches / 97 cm
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Map ref:
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MEAST4385
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Description:
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Western sheet of the fundamental survey of the Gulf, showing the coasts of modern Iraq, Iran, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar and the western United Arab Emirates.
The importance of the Gulf as a strategic and commercial water way has been recognised since the classical period so scientifically accurate charts were a high priority for the East India Company, who were responsible for its administration. The first survey of this magnitude is attributed to Lieuts. Guy and Bruckes in 1821-29 of the Bombay Marine. Although a magnificent work, it was a product of its time and by the mid 19th century, some of its deficiencies were apparent. In 1850, another naval officer, Lieut. C.G.Constable read a paper in front of the Bombay Geographical Society, outlining the problems with the survey; this in turn brought him to the attention of the government of India. In 1856, now promoted to Commander, he was detached from his normal duties and attached to the Persian Expeditionary Force as a surveyor. At the conclusion of the First Anglo-Persian War, in 1857, he was ordered to undertake a new survey of the Gulf, with the assistance of Lieut. A.W.Stiffe. The resulting survey became the fundamental nautical source chart or mother map for decades of surveying work performed in the Gulf. Its results were distributed throughout the world, both commercially and for government purposes.
The survey was issued on two separate sheets, covering the eastern and western sections of the Gulf. This is an example of the western sheet covering the modern coasts mentioned above. Contemporary sources can be found describing the accuracy and painstaking detail that Constable and Stiffe took in their delineation. Several descriptions of visits to local coastal settlements and rulers of the region are mentioned within these sources, with the two naval officers being very impressed with both the hospitality of the region and the co-operation of local mariners whose contribution was priceless. This resulted not only in the magnificent survey present on this example but also in the detail portrayed on the insets of the map. There are four in total. Kharg Island and the Sheikh Shuaib Anchorage, now Lavan Island, are on the Iranian coast and both major oil terminals. The other two insets are of Ras Tanura, which is now Saudi Aramco’s major oil terminal in the Gulf and the harbour of Al-Bida serves Doha in Qatar.
This chart is extremely rare, almost never commercially available. We were able to find one example of a 1933 edition previously offered for sale but it is unclear if this was an original or a reproduction. The British Library has several examples of different issues from 1902 onwards to the 1960s. The University of Southampton has one example. Our example offered for sale is the 1912 edition with small corrections to 1913. The major update is the integration of information provided by the Marine Survey of India in 1911. Another major change on this edition is the addition of the cartouche on the upper right. The previous edition, in 1902, is digitally illustrated by both the British Library and the Qatar National Library, showing an inset of Abu Shahr on the same location. SL [MEAST4385] |