Houyhnhnms Land. Jonathan Swift. Gulliver's Travels. Australia/Tasmania 1751 map

CAPTION PRINTED BELOW PICTURE: Houyhnhnms Land [Gulliver's Travels]

One of the earliest fantasy maps ever published depicts Houyhnhnms Land, the fictional country visited by Gulliver in the fourth part of Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels (1726). Houyhnhnms Land is inhabited by highly intelligent, rational horses called Houyhnhnms, who govern the land, and brutish, deformed humanoid creatures known as Yahoos. The map shows Houyhnhnms Land to be an island south of Australia and west of Tasmania - this southern coast of Australia is longitudinally compressed. Marked on the map are Edels Land (near Shark Bay) and Lewins Land (Cape Leeuwin), both in Western Australia) to the north, and Nuyts Land (the Great Australian Bight) to the north-east, on the mainland with the islands of St Francis and St Pieter (Nuyts Archipelago) further east, and Sweers, Maatsuyker and De Witt islands (The Maatsuyker group off the south coast of Tasmania) to the east. The map is somewhat careless with the scale, however; Edels Land to Lewins Land are shown adjacent, while in reality they are some 1000 km apart, while the sweep of the Great Australian Bight, from Cape Leeuwin, Australia's south-westerly point to the Maatsuyker Islands, off the southern tip of Tasmania, is over 3000 km. The map, while not geographically precise, serves as a satirical tool, emphasizing the fantastical nature of the land and parodying the speculative maps often included in contemporary travel narratives. Like the maps of Lilliput and Laputa, the map of Houyhnhnms Land is unattributed, though it is believed that Swift’s friend, the cartographer Herman Moll, may have inspired its design. This fictional geography underscores Swift’s broader critique of human nature and the philosophical ideals of his time, with Houyhnhnms Land representing a stark contrast to the flawed societies Gulliver had previously encountered. The maps were only included in the early editions of the book.

DATE PRINTED: 1751    

IMAGE SIZE: Approx 17.0 x 9.0cm, 6.5 x 3.5 inches (Small)

TYPE: Antique copperplate fantasy parody map

CONDITION: Good; suitable for framing. Please check the scan for any blemishes prior to making your purchase. Please contact us if you would like to arrange to view this map. Virtually all antiquarian maps and prints are subject to some normal aging due to use and time which is not obtrusive unless otherwise stated. We offer a no questions asked return policy.

AUTHENTICITY: This is an authentic historic print, published at the date stated above. It is not a modern copy.

VERSO: There is nothing printed on the reverse side, which is plain

ARTIST/CARTOGRAPHER/ENGRAVER: Jonathan Swift

PROVENANCE: "Travels into several remote nations of the world. In four parts.", by Lemuel Gulliver, first a surgeon, and then a captain of several ships. The fifth edition, corrected. London: Printed for Charles Bathurst, and sold by T. Woodward, C. Davis, C. Hitch, R. Dodsley, and W. Bowyer. MDCCLI [Gulliver's Travels, by Jonathan Swift]