Developments at the national library of Australia, 2004-05.

Significant Acquisitions

It has been a year of significant acquisitions for NLA Maps, including the following items (see 'Gateways' online for more details at nla.gov.au/ntwkpubs/gatehome.html):

1) Richard Cushee-Matched pair of terrestrial and celestial globes, 1731: Call numbers Map Globe 6 and Map Globe 7 (see 'Gateways' April 2005). This pair of terrestrial globes is significant as it is the earliest printed English map to define the east coast of Australia, nearly 40 years before Cook.

2) Charles. F. Beautemps-Beaupre--Manuscript map of Australasia, 1796: Call number: Map rm 3852 nla.gov.au/nla.maprm3852 (see 'Gateways' Feb 2005). One of three copies compiled by Beautemps-Beaupre on board the d'Entrecasteaux expedition to Australia. It shows the full extent of Dutch, French and British knowledge of the Australian coastline prior to Flinders' voyage.

3) David Carnegie--Manuscript map of Western Australia, 1894; and lithographed wall map, 1897: Call numbers: Map rm 3850 nla.gov.au/nla.map-rm3850 and Map rm 3851 (not yet scanned) (see 'Gateways' Feb. 2005). Manuscript map of Carnegie's first WA expedition in 1894 and a lithographed wall map showing his more ambitious 1896-1897 expedition.

4) French world map compiled by A. Duplessy around 1780: Call number: Map rm 3803 nla.gov.au/nla.map-rm3803 A previously unknown single hemisphere world map titled Globe plat ou mappe-monde d'une projection nouvelle.

5) 'Geographie' Jigsaw puzzles by Hyacinthe Langlois, 1841: Call number: Map rm 3827 (see 'Gateways' nla.gov.au/ntwkpubs/gw/72/map.html). A boxed set of jigsaw puzzles published in 1841, being a wonderful example of a French educational tool for teaching geography to young children.

6) Rare map of Pacific Ocean and the Americas, by Johannes Matalius Metellus, 1589: Call number: Map rm 3826 (see nla.gov.au/ntwkpubs/gw/72/map.html). The French cartographer Johannes Matalius Metellus' Maris Pacifici vulgo mar del zur Terra Australis siue magelanica nondum detecta, published in 1598, is the second oldest map of the Pacific, and is a reduced derivative of Abraham Ortelius' Maris Pacifici of 1589.

7) Early geological maps relating to Australia and New South Wales: including call number: Map rm 3776 nla.gov.au/nla.map-rm3776 (see 'Gateways' nla.gov.au/ntwkpubs/gw/70/maps.html). This significant collection of maps gathered by the geologist David Branagan during his working career, reflect the pioneering work of some of Australia's early geologists and mineralogists. It includes Robert Brough Smyth's First sketch of a geological map of Australia including Tasmania, 1875.

8) German School Atlas by K. Vogel around 1841: Call number: Map ra 291 (not yet scanned) (see nla.gov.au/ntwkpubs/gw/69/html/15atlas.html). A very attractive, unusual and rare German school atlas issued in loose-leaf format and housed in a gilt-edged box. It consists of 16 hand-coloured maps of the continents of the world, with more detailed maps of parts of Europe.

9) Astronomia-Teutsch Astronomei, 1545: Call number: Map ra 290 nla.gov.au/nla.map-ra290 (see nla.gov.au/ntwkpubs/gw/67/html/11maps.html). This is a very rare and unusual mid-sixteenth century German astronomical work published by Cyriaco Jacob zum Barth at Frankfurt-am-Main in 1545. Written in Gothic German, the work is a detailed study of astronomy and features a windhead world map with the southern hemisphere landmass titled Australia-the proper noun form of the Latin word Australis.

NLA Renovations

As part of ongoing renovations of the LG1 level of the Library, the Map Reading Room through to the Map Curator's office received new carpet, while the Reading Room was also freshly painted! This occurred prior to the International Web Archiving Conference held in early November 2004. The Newspaper Reading Room is currently undergoing similar renovations.

New Equipment and Services

The Copies Direct facility went live in May 2004. Readers are now able to place orders for photocopies and photographic copies of items from the Library's collection via the Internet. By selecting the Copies Direct button from the catalogue details page of the required item, the system automatically transfers the relevant bibliographic details to the online order form. Once other details such as payment etc. are complete, the order arrives in the Maps Section. If the request is for rare material the reader will be directed to a photographic, i.e., digital, file on CD.

The Map Section PCs have had CD writers installed, so the group can reproduce images on CD of NLA map collection material that is already scanned and available online. This means such requests can be supplied within three days instead of the nominal three week turnaround period required for photographic orders of hardcopy material.

New digital microform readers with email facility are currently being installed in the Newspaper Reading Room together with one in the Map Room.

Libraries Australia--public access to catalogue holdings of Australian libraries is available at <nla.gov.au/libraries/> (see 'Gateways' nla.gov.au/ntwkpubs/gw/72/librariesAust.html)

Australia's most famous manuscript, James Cook's Endeavour Journal, is now available online at nla.gov.au/nla.ms-ms1 .

Maps in Series; Online Map Index; Special Map Collections

The Library plans to include records for individual mapsheets that are currently only catalogue maps in series-to-series level. Slow progress is being made with the concept of developing an online map index to the Library's map series collection, which comprises about 2/3 of the collection or around 400 000 map sheets.

We are gradually addressing the need to making records of material in special collections, such as Braga, more readily accessible.

Update on Rare Maps and Atlases

Digitisation, 2004-05 and beyond: Almost all of the Nan Kivell, Ferguson and Tooley rare map collections have been scanned and are now available online via the NLA catalogue. From 2005 onwards, the rare map collection will be digitised and it is envisaged that the scanning process will be complete in 3-4 years (based on current estimates of 1000 rare map scans a year).

Rare Atlas--analytics: One staff member and a volunteer are working on Rare Atlases to catalogue individual plates within loose-leaved and bound volumes. Each plate will include a brief record, which will be linked to the main record details and vice versa, via the catalogue. Notable works, such as the Doncker Sea Atlas of 1659 and the London Atlas by Arrowsmith have been scanned; others will eventually be available online.

Last but not least

Concept for 'Maps Australia' 'Cartography Australia' 'Carto Australia'?

'Picture Australia' is an Internet-based service that allows you to search many significant online pictorial collections at the same time. Similarly, 'Music Australia' was launched in February 2005.