1734 Velarde-Bagay-Suarez Map: Hydrographical and Chorographical Chart of the Philippine Islands
The “Mother of all Philippine Maps,” this Hydrographical and Chorographical Chart of the Philippine Islands was drawn by the Jesuit cartographer Pedro Murillo Velarde, illustrated by Filipino artist Francisco Suarez, and engraved by Filipino engraver Nicolas dela Cruz Bagay.
The US Library of Congress described it as the “the first and most important map of the Philippines.”
Library of Congress description
This magnificent map of the Philippine archipelago, drawn by the Jesuit Father Pedro Murillo Velarde (1696–1753) and published in Manila in 1734, is the first and most important scientific map of the Philippines. The Philippines were at that time a vital part of the Spanish Empire, and the map shows the maritime routes from Manila to Spain and to New Spain (Mexico and other Spanish territory in the New World), with captions.
In the upper margin stands a great cartouche with the title of the map, crowned by the Spanish royal coat of arms flanked each side by an angel with a trumpet, from which an inscription unfurls. The map is not only of great interest from the geographic point of view, but also as an ethnographic document. It is flanked by twelve engravings, six on each side, eight of which depict different ethnic groups living in the archipelago and four of which are cartographic descriptions of particular cities or islands.
According to the labels, the engravings on the left show: Sangleyes (Chinese Philippinos) or Chinese; Kaffirs (a derogatory term for non-Muslims), a Camarin (from the Manila area), and a Lascar (from the Indian subcontinent, a British Raj term); mestizos, a Mardica (of Portuguese extraction), and a Japanese; and two local maps–one of Samboagan (a city on Mindanao), and the other of the port of Cavite. On the right side are: various people in typical dress; three men seated, an Armenian, a Mughal, and a Malabar (from an Indian textile city); an urban scene with various peoples; a rural scene with representations of domestic and wild animals; a map of the island of Guajan (meaning Guam); and a map of Manila.
Download
Download the 1734 Velarde-Bagay-Suarez map in different resolutions.
Alternatively, you can view a high-resolution image directly at the Library of Congress website [Link].
| Type | Resolution | Size |
|---|---|---|
| JPG | 1,812 x 1,692 px | 890kB |
| JPG | 3,625 x 3,385 px | 3.4MB |
| JPG | 7,251 x 6,770 px | 12.5MB |
| JP2 | 14,502 x 13,540 px | 60.7MB |
1734_Velarde-Bagay-Suarez_Hydrographical_Chorographical_Map_Philippines.jp2 (60.7 MB)