September. October 95most of the Gulf of Carpentaria’s shores and all the way along
northern Australia to North West Cape, showing that it was all
one land (even if some of the coast he saw was in fact islands,
such as the Tiwi islands).
In 1688 the crew of the English privateering ship Cygnet,
including navigator William Dampier, landed and did main-
tenance on their ship on Australia’s north-west coast. Back in
England, Dampier lobbied for a ship to take on an expedition to
the Pacifi c and the Indies. Eventually, he was given a rotting old
fi re ship (built to be set on fi re and sailed into an enemy fl eet)
by the Royal Navy. His was an expedition that was seemingly
devised to fail, but the discussion of it probably added impetus
to a VOC expedition that set out to explore the Indian Ocean
and Australia in 1696, led by Willem de Vlamingh. By con-
trast, it was an impressively well-resourced expedition, using
three ships in sound condition and selected for diff erent roles.
A principal backer of the expedition was Nicolaes Witsen, mayor
of Amsterdam and a polymath scholar. He wanted a voyage of
scientifi c exploration and for specimens to be collected – the
kind of expedition that was undertaken by the British and French
in the following centuries. Vlamingh was the right man for the
job. The charts he and his offi cers produced show a new level of
accuracy. They investigated in detail and collected specimens,
including black swans from the river they named Swan River
(actually Swarte Swaene Revier and other spellings), which
runs through Perth, WA.
The last VOC expedition to Australia was undertaken in
1756, by which time Australia was regularly visited by Macassan
fl eets from Indonesia. Led by Jean Gonzal, it added little to the
knowledge of the continent, two-thirds of which the Dutch
had already charted during the previous century.YOU TOO CAN FOLLOW IN
the wake of the Dutch
explorers with Australian
Geographic Society partner
Coral Expeditions.
Next year marks the 250th
anniversary of Captain Cook’s
landing at Botany Bay, the
200th anniversary of Phillip
Parker King’s explorations
of the WA coast, and the
35th anniversary of Coral
Expeditions. To mark that
anniversary, Coral Expeditions
will circumnavigate this great
land, to see the coast the way
that mariners throughout
history have seen it, and to
explore key historic sites that
shaped Australia.Sailing aboard Coral
Adventurer, the voyage will
undertake a full circumnaviga-
tion of Australia’s coastline –
a once-in-a-lifetime and
never-to-be-repeated
expedition. This intimate journey
of discovery will be enriched by
excellent guest lecturers and
expedition team members.
Explore hard-to-reach
locations of historic signifi-
cance or natural beauty.
Share stories of historic events
that shaped our nation from
ancient times to early
explorers and modern
wartime. Be immersed in the
arts and cultures of the people
and communities you visit.Follow in the footsteps of
This painting, thought to be of Abel Tasman and his those early explorers.
family by Jacob Cuyp, is dated 1637. VOC captain Tasman
brought his (second) wife and daughter to live in Batavia.Talking
AustraliaListen to a podcast by
Master Mariner
Gary Wilson on sailing
the Duyf ken replica.
SCAN HEREAG59 Nights | 60 DaysDeparting Darwin: 7 November 2020
Returning Darwin: 5 January 2021KEY STOPS INCLUDE:
Careening Bay, WA
Montebello Islands, WA
Houtman Abrolhos, WA
Archipelago of the Recherche,
WA
Kangaroo Island, SA
King Island, TAS
Twofold Bay, NSW
Fraser Island, QLD
Cooktown and
Endeavour Reef, QLD
Thursday Island, QLD
Pennefather River, QLD
Wessel Islands, NT.PRICE INCLUDES THESE
SPECIAL EVENTS:
Winemaker’s Dinner at
Leeuwin Estate winery,
Margaret River, WA
Sailing on the historic
square rigger James
Craig on Sydney Harbour
Christmas Dinner under
the stars at Uluru – with
private jet transfers.Coral Adventurer.PAINTING: NATIONAL LIBRARY OF AUSTRALIA
Coral Expeditions’ 35th anniversary
circumnavigation of AustraliaPlaces are limited – BOOK NOW.
COST: From $38,860pp BOOKINGS: Call 1800 079 545 or
email [email protected]