Discover cartographer, draftsperson Abel Tasman

Name variations

This field records and makes accessible name variations, as found in sources. Alternate spellings, nicknames, maiden names - with or without the married name - are included in this category.

: Tasman, Abel Janszoon

Qualifications: cartographer, draftsperson

Nationality/school: North Netherlandish

Born: Lutjegast 1603
c. 1603

Deceased: Jakarta 1659-10-10

Family relationships this field records any family relationship to one or more other artist(s).: Married 1) Claesgie Heyndriks (no place, no date) and 2) in Amsterdam on 27 December 1631 Jannetje Tjaers, father of Claesge Tasman

This person/entity in other databases

1 hit in RKDlibrary as author
1 hit in RKDlibrary as illustrator

Suggested searches in RKDartists&

Biographical information

Active in

Amsterdam (stad) 1631 - 1633
skipper-explorer, started early on as a youth as a sailor; he entered the service of the VOC in 1632 (the following data taken from Molhuysen/Blok et al. 1911-1937)
Nederlands-Indië (hist.) 1633 - 1635
left with the ship 'Banda', first as a helmsman, than as a skipper: his task was to find the best route to the Moluccas (Ambon and Banda) during th eastern monsoon
Molukken (archipel) 1635 - 1636
In 1635 he stood as commander at the head of some vessels, which had to cruise on the enemy (especially other Europeans) in the Moluccan waters, returned to Batavia in the course of 1636
Jakarta 1636 - 1637
Left on New Years Eve with the 'Banda'
Amsterdam (stad) 1637 - 1638
11April 1638 he left again for the East on 'De Engel' (a 'fluitschip') in the company of his wife
Jakarta 1638-10-11 - 1639
Arrived on 11 October 1638
Taiwan 1640
historically known as Formosa; under the command of Thijs Quast they went with two ships to find the mythical island kingdom beyond Japan ‘uyttermaten rijck van gout ende silver’ [exceedingly rich in gold and silver]. While patrolling the ocean around Japan against the Portuguese enemy (read privateering) he visited Japan, Formosa and Cambodia
Deshima 1640
Jakarta 1641
Palembang (Indonesië) 1642
on a mission on behalf of th Dutch government (= VOC)
Australië 1642
Left on 14 August 1642 with two ships to explore unknown 'Zuidland' together with his 2nd in command Frans Jacobsz Visscher
Tasmanië (deelstaat) 1642
Nieuw-Zeeland 1642
Jakarta 1643
Returned on 15 June 1643 after rounding New Zealand, Tamania etc.: names like Nieuw-Holland, Nieuw-Zeeland, Tasmania and Cape Maria van Diemen are still witnesses to this day of this voyage
Australië 1644-01 - 1644-08
from January till August they specifically mapped Northern and Western Australia
1645
(Enggano) He acted here with reprehensible cruelty (even in the eyes of his contemporaries) against the natives
Jambi (stad) 1646
Thailand 1647
Jakarta 1648-01 - 1648-05
Chosen as an elder in the Batavian church
Filippijnen 1648-05
His last command was over eight ships to 'reduce' the Spanish in Manilla and to visit Siam: his reprehensible cruelty, in this case against his own crew, cost him his command
Jakarta 1649 - 1659
On his return to Batavia he was summoned before the Judicial Council, sentenced to heavy fines and removed from his rank. Although reinstated on 5 January 1651, he left the service of the VOC at the end of 1651-beginning of 1652 and started his own business company trading the Java coast.

born in

active in

died in

Literature

Literature in RKDLibrary: 1 hit in RKDlibrary as author

Molhuysen/Blok et al. 1911-1937 , vol. 7, p. 1203-1205 (with (older) bibliography)
Donkersloot-de Vrij 2003 , p. 196

B.J. Slot, Abel Tasman en de ontdekking van Nieuw-Zeeland, Kevelaer 1992

Documentation RKD

This field specifies the location of the various RKD documentation materials. Most of the locations refer to our art-historical image documentation. In addition, you will find references to press documentation (clippings and short articles) here.

PDO/Collectors and art professionals

Project: Gerson Digital : Asia

External links: this explorer-cartographer in Ecartico

Permalink: https://rkd.nl/explore/artists/416955

Creation date: 2009-06-25; Last modified date: 2023-05-16

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Abel Tasman

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