Meuse estuary – Jacob Quack + Joost van Geel + Reinier & Josua Ottens, 1740

MEUSE ESTUARY FROM ROTTERDAM TO THE SEA

“Afbeeldinge van de Maes van de stadt Rotterdam tot in zee, met de aengelege steden, en plaetsen, sanden, drooghten, en coersen, soo als die tegen woordigh bevaren wert.” [Depiction of the River Meuse from the City of Rotterdam to the Sea, with the adjoining towns, places, sandbanks, shallows, and courses, as they are presently navigated.] Copper engraving on 4 mounted sheets made by Joost van Geel, first published in 1666 by order of Jacob Quack, here in a reissue by Reinier and Josua Ottens from 1740. Colourd by a later hand. Size (platemark): 49.5 × 143 cm.

This monumental wall map depicts the lower reaches of the River Meuse between the North Sea and Rotterdam, showing towns such as Brielle, Maassluis, Vlaardingen, Schiedam, and Rotterdam itself, as well as polders, reclaimed land, navigation channels, and anchorages. The map highlights not only the strategic location of Rotterdam but also its importance as a seaport and centre of trade.

Jacob Quack produced the map on commission from the Rotterdam city government. In his own words:

“Thus, of my own accord, I have taken it upon me to present this chart to Your Noble and Honourable Lordships […] with a precise delineation of the Meuse, including all shoals, sandbanks, barriers, embankments, buoys, floats, and also the deepwater channel, along with the towns and places situated along the Meuse.”

From 1660 onward, Jacob Quack was active in Rotterdam in managing the postal services to and from England, along with the associated communication network for ships entering or leaving the mouth of the River Meuse. As postmaster, Quack was more familiar than anyone with the towns situated along the Meuse, thanks to the way he had organised these services. Through his work, he had an intimate knowledge of navigation channels and shallow waters. A charming detail is that along the top edge of the map, he also included profile views of ’s-Gravenzande, Naaldwijk, and Delft.

Accompanying the 1666 edition, Quack added the following description:

“The city of Rotterdam is currently laid out roughly in the shape of a triangle, its northern point marked by the Delft Gate, stretching southward along the Meuse. This layout can also be discerned in the chart. From it one may also judge the city’s breadth, particularly by following the traced course of the river.

The entire urban area spans about 144 bunders (1 bunder = 1 hectare) and 430 square roeden (1 roede = approx. 11.87 m²), and contains more than seven thousand houses. On the landward side, the city is enclosed by deep canals and ten city gates: the Oostpoort (East Gate), the Oude Hoofdpoort (Old Main Gate), the Oost-Maaspoort (East Meuse Gate), the West Maaspoort (West Meuse Gate), the Nieuwe Hoofdpoort (New Main Gate), the Schiedamsche Poort (Schiedam Gate), the Coolsche or Binnenweg Gate, the Delftse Poort (Delft Gate), the Hofpoort at the outlet of the Rotte (named after the former country estate Hof van Wena), and the Goudsche Poort (Gouda Gate).

Some of these gates, such as the Old and New Main Gates, are built in blue or white freestone and are particularly impressive. Rotterdam is well connected to surrounding cities: one mile (1 Rhineland mile = 4.7 km) from Schiedam, two from Delft, three from Dordrecht and Gouda, three from Brielle, four from Vlaardingen, five from Leiden, and four from The Hague. The city lies directly on the most navigable river in Europe: the Meuse, where the sea’s salt water does not reach, and into which the Rhine, Waal, Merwede, Lek, and IJssel all flow.

With favourable tides, the open sea can be reached in just three hours. Thanks to its advantageous location, the city attracts not only maritime shipping but also inland trade from Brabant, Flanders, Gelderland, and the entire Rhine basin. Rotterdam receives a constant stream of goods, provisions, and merchandise from all parts of the interior.

For a city of its size, Rotterdam has an extraordinary number of harbours: seven large and well-equipped basins, including the Oude Haven, Leuvehaven, Blaak, Wijnhaven, Scheepmakershaven, Haringvliet, and Nieuwe Haven — together providing moorage for thousands of vessels. In addition, there is a central basin or “kolk” for market barges and cargo vessels, and even larger fair ships. A special western inlet, closed off by the covered Grote Markt Bridge, allows ships with lowering masts to proceed far into the city.

The Meuse itself is deep and safe to navigate. Large ships can sail under full canvas straight to the quays without anchoring. Even vessels with a draught of 15 or 16 feet (over 5 metres) can enter and depart with ease at ordinary tide. The anchoring ground is so secure that no ship has ever been lost here — not even during the heaviest storms.

Due to increasing traffic, four pilot services now operate where once there were only two. Heavy warships and East Indiamen usually unload at Hellevoetsluis, then have their cargo transported by land to Rotterdam within just four or five hours. There, everything is securely stored and unloaded under the watch of municipal cranes and warehouses.

Across the length of the city run several watercourses, including the Kipstraat and Botersloot, extending behind the so-called “French Church” (located on the Schiedamse Vest) and connecting to the River Rotte, from which the city takes its name. Other channels such as the Schie and the Delfshaven Canal (linking Rotterdam via Delfshaven to Delft and the sea) join at the Spui, thereby strengthening the network of waterways throughout the city.

These canals provide not only daily renewal of the inner waters, but also efficient drainage of excess water. Fed by the Meuse and enhanced by a dam opposite the city at Feyenoord, the resulting current scours the harbour and maintains an extraordinary depth in front of the city.

It has often been noted with amazement that even in harsh winters, when nearby cities were frozen in and isolated, the Meuse at Rotterdam remained ice-free, allowing ships to continue sailing to and from France, England, and other destinations. Meanwhile, in the eastern parts of the city, the ice would collect against the dam and freeze so solid that horses could pull sledges across it — though only with the proper permissions.”

Price: Euro 5.750,-