Coast of British India: Madras to Ramapatnam

1918

Copper engraving on paper

Print size: 39 x 26 in (99 x 66 cm)
Sheet size: 40.75 x 28 in (103.5 x 71 cm)

Madras to Ramapatnam — A British Admiralty Hydrographic Chart of the Coromandel Coast

Large engraved nautical chart depicting the Coromandel Coast from Madras (Chennai) to Ramapatnam, with dense soundings, shoals, reefs, sandbanks, coastal profiles, harbour approaches, tidal notes, and navigational bearings. Includes two large compass roses, a rhumb-line framework, inset harbour plans, and hydrographic correction tables. Issued under the authority of the Royal Navy Hydrographic Service, during the tenure of Sir William J. L. Wharton as Hydrographer to the Navy.

A finely detailed British Admiralty nautical chart of the Coromandel Coast, covering the strategically vital maritime corridor from Madras to Ramapatnam, issued as Admiralty Chart No. 575 in its 1918 New Edition state. Compiled from Royal Navy hydrographic surveys, the chart embodies the scientific rigour and navigational precision that underpinned British maritime dominance in the Indian Ocean.

The coastline is rendered with meticulous attention to soundings, reef systems, shoals, sandbanks, river mouths, anchorages, and harbour approaches, providing essential guidance for naval and commercial vessels navigating India’s eastern seaboard. Two large compass roses, rhumb-line projections, inset harbour plans, and tabulated survey data reinforce its functional role as a working navigational instrument rather than a decorative production.

Produced during the late imperial phase of British hydrography, charts of this type were critical to colonial administration, maritime trade, naval logistics, and the movement of goods and personnel across South Asia. Beyond its practical application, the chart stands as a material document of how scientific surveying, cartographic standardisation, and imperial infrastructure converged to transform geographic knowledge into operational power.

A scarce and authoritative survival of official Admiralty chartmaking, of strong appeal to collectors of maritime history, hydrographic cartography, colonial India, and naval ephemera.

NON-EXPORTABLE

This lot is offered at RESERVE

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