About World Globes

Abel Janszoon Tasman (1603 - 1659), was a Dutch seafarer, explorer, and merchant.

Tasman is best known for his voyages of 1642 and 1644 in the service of the
United East India Company. He was the first known European expedition
to reach the islands of Van Diemen’s Land (now Tasmania) and New Zealand and to sight the Fiji islands, which he did in 1643. Tasman also mapped substantial portions of Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands.

On 24 November 1642 Abel Tasman sighted the west coast of Tasmania, north of Macquarie Harbour. He named his discovery Van Diemen’s Land (now Tasmania) after Antonie van Diemen, Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies.  After some exploration, Tasman had intended to proceed in a northerly direction but as the wind was unfavourable he steered east.  On 13 December they sighted land on the north-west coast of the South Island, New Zealand, becoming the first Europeans to do so.  On route back to Batavia, Tasman came across the Tongan archipelago on 20 January 1643.
With three ships on his second voyage (Limmen, Zeemeeuw and the tender Braek) in 1644, he followed the south coast of New Guinea eastward. He missed the Torres Strait between New Guinea and Australia, and continued his voyage along the Australian coast. He mapped the north coast of Australia making observations on the land and its people.

His voyages were most important during the age of discovery, but led to nothing for over a century, until the era of James Cook, Tasmania and New Zealand were not visited by Europeans - mainland Australia was visited, but usually only by accident.

We must marvel at the courage and determination of these explorers to explore uncharted waters and territories making it possible to have to world globes of today.  Today, we use GPS systems to chart our way across town!

References:  Edward Duyker (ed.) The Discovery of Tasmania: Journal Extracts from the Expeditions
of Abel Janszoon Tasman and Marc-Joseph Marion Dufresne 1642 & 1772, St David’s Park
Publishing/Tasmanian Government Printing Office, Hobart, 1992, pp. 106, ISBN 0 7246 2241 1.