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Willem JanszoonPrint Page Print this page

08-December-2015
08-December-2015

The monument and park commemorate Willem Janszoon (c.1570 - c.1630), the Dutch navigator who was the first person to chart the Australian coast. The memorial commemorates the 400th anniversary of his voyage which was the first recorded contact between Europe and Australia. The erection of the monument was organised by the ACT Committee of Australia On The Map (AOTM) 1606-2006.

On 18 November 1605, Willem Janszoon in the Duyfken sailed from Bantam near Java to the coast of western New Guinea. Janszoon then crossed the eastern end of the Arafura Sea, without seeing the Torres Strait, into the Gulf of Carpentaria.

On 26 February 1606, he made landfall at the Pennefather River on the western shore of Cape York in Queensland, near the modern town of Weipa. This is the first recorded European landfall on the Australian continent. Janszoon proceeded to chart approximately 320 kilometres of the coastline, which he thought was a southerly extension of New Guinea.

Location

Address:Jansz Crescent, Willem Janszoon Commemorative Park, Griffith, 2603
State:ACT
Area:Foreign
GPS Coordinates:Lat: -35.330631
Long: 149.130106
Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate.
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Details

Monument Type:Monument
Monument Theme:People
Sub-Theme:Exploration
Actual Event Start Date:26-February-1606
Designer:Julie Kennett

Dedication

Actual Monument Dedication Date:Saturday 20th October, 2007
Front Inscription

Plaque:
In 1606 Willem Janszoon sailed through northern 
Australian waters. This Memorial, representing the 
prow of a boat, commemorates the 400th 
anniversary of this first recorded contact between
Europe and Australia. The names of these 
explorers, other navigators who followed and their 
ships are commemorated by street names in the
surrounding suburbs. This project was made 
possible through the generous support of the local 
community and the Governments of the ACT 
and the Netherlands.

Source: MA
Monument details supplied by Monument Australia - www.monumentaustralia.org.au