Adam's Country House Collections 12th & 13th October 2020

140 Country House Collections Terra Australis Incognita, or ‘the unknown southern land’, was initially discovered by the Dutch explorer Willem Janszoon in 1606. Australia became a place to which several great navigators ventured, each charting a part of its coastline and bringing their discoveries home. In 1788, the arrival of James Cook and Arthur Phillip triggered the British colonisation of Terra Australis, starting in New South Wales. It was towards this newly colonised land that Matthew Flinders, a navigator of the British Royal Navy, sailed for the first time in 1795. Flinders, a na - tive of Lincolnshire, England, was drawn to a life of adventure after reading the tales of Robinson Crusoe as a young boy. He immediately set himself apart from his peers by actually following his dream, setting his sights on Australia as a land that could be the formation of his career. In 1801, Flinders was promoted to the position of commander and was given control of the Investigator. Newly married, filled with determination and unbeknown to him, Flinders embarked on what was to become a nine-year trip, leaving comfort and security for the swill of the salty sea and the promise of discovery. Thus, Flinders became the first man to circumnavigate Australia, a task that took him two years. Along the way, he metic - ulously recorded the coastland and stopped frequently to allow for studies of the flora and fauna. His work helped to remove the ‘incognita’ from Terra Australis and it was in fact Flinders who first coined the term ‘Australia’. He often embarked on shorter trips in smaller, open boats, detailing inlets, such as Botany Bay, and he proved that Tasmania was an island. Whilst at sea, Flinders gained a wealth of experience. He studied the tides and was the first to acknowledge how the presence of metal in a ship’s structure could lead to deviations on the compass. This issue was later fixed by what we now know as a Flinders bar, a piece of soft iron deliberately placed near the compass to counteract the ship’s magnetic pull. His exploration of Australia complete, Flinders planned his return home but it was decided that the slowly rotting Investigator was not up to the task. At Port Jackson, Flinders joined the HMS Porpoise, however the ship was wrecked on the Great Barrier Reef. Demonstrating considerable skill and bravery, Flinders manned a cutter back to Port Jackson, traversing over 1100km of open water. Having safely arrived, he then arranged for the rest of the marooned crew to be rescued. Despite having earned a ship to carry him harmlessly to England, Flinders was granted possession of the Cumberland, a ship whose lack of worth made itself apparent in the Indian ocean. Unaware that the Peace of Amiens had been ruptured and that Britain and France were again at war, Flinders docked at Mauritius seeking repairs for his ship. Instead, he was placed under immediate arrest by General De Caen, Governor of Mauritius and unlawfully detained on the island for nearly seven years. De Caen claimed that Flinders was a British spy sent to scout the land in preparation for an attack and refused to let him go, despite an order from Napoleon himself. However, it would seem that Matthew Flinders had an ability to turn disaster into boon and he soon ingratiated himself with the local community and spent the majority of his time living happily just outside the town. His stay here proved invaluable as he busied himself with transcribing his journey around Australia and gathering his notes into a more cohesive account. Furthermore, Flinders’ writings have provided much information on the French colonial way of life and how such territories treated prisoners of war. With Mauritus blockaded by British ships, General De Caen finally succumbed and Flinders was given his freedom in 1810. His departure from the island was bittersweet, his anticipation at finally returning home and being reunited with his wife marred by the loss of his friends on the island. Indeed, his final night was spent in raucous revelry with food and dance continuing until daylight. On parting, Flinders wrote ‘My heart is oppressed at quitting my friends here, perhaps forever.’ On his return, Flinders plunged into the creation of ‘A Voyage to Terra Australis’ and lived just long enough for it to enter the public domain, passing away a day after its publication in 1814. A short but eventful life, that of Matthew Flinders is celebrated for its contribution to science and exploration, the Flinders name immortalised in locations throughout Australia, such as Flinders Bay, Flinders Ranges and Flinders Chase. 476 MATTHEW FLINDERS (BRITISH 1774 - 1814) A Voyage to Terra Australis, showing the parts explored between 1798 and 1803 by M. Flinders Comm of H.M.S Investigator, bound volume of charts, coastal observa- tions and floral studies €5,000 – 8,000 Day II LIVE AUCTION: Tuesday 13 th October 2020 starting at 11am