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Carta Chorographica del Archipielago de las Islas Philipinas, delineada por el Almirante Don Francisco Diaz Romero, y Sargento Mayor d. Antonio d. Ghandia, Diputados de la Ciudad, y Comercio de Manila: en cuyo nombre la dedican a la Cat. M. del Señor Don Phelipe V el Animoso. Año MDCCXXVII. This glorious 1727 Spanish map of the Philippines pre-dates the more famous 1734 map by Fr. Pedro Murillo Velarde by seven years. Titled a Chorographical Map of the Philippine Archipelago, it puts the Philippines in the context of its Asian regional neighbors in the west and south, and the Pacific Ocean in the east.

The inclusion of Palau and the Marianas Islands at the right border and the drawn routes followed by the naos (galleons) are shown, linking the Philippines with New Spain (Mexico) and the West. With the exception of the Reino de Mindanao (Kingdom of Mindanao), which is mostly rectangular in shape and grossly separated from the Visayas, and Bohol, which seemingly floats on its own, there is an amount of fairly accurate detail not previously seen in Philippine maps. The seas encompassing the islands are labeled Mar de la Archipelago de las Islas Philipinas, delineating the extent and coverage of Spain’s dominion over the islands.

Admiral Don Francisco Diaz Romero and Sergeant Major Antonio Ghandia (aka Echeandia), members of the Spanish Navy based in Manila, were tasked with compiling, drawing and publishing this map. Dominated by the Bourbon royal arms and with two elaborate cartouches, the map is discussed in detail in Issue No. 3 of The Murillo Bulletin.

(image courtesy of the British Library Board, Maps 184.f.3.)