'Ipswich Bay' by Captain Joseph Frederick Wallet des Barres is an exeptional rare and sought after chart which was published in London in 1776.
 
The chart is a meticulously detailed navigational map of the coastal region spanning from Marblehead and Salem, Massachusetts, to Hampton Harbor and Great Boar's Head in New Hampshire, encompassing Cape Ann.
 
Joseph Frederick Wallet Des Barres (1721-1824) was a Canadian cartographer born in Switzerland. His academic journey led him to study under the renowned mathematician Daniel Bernoulli at the University of Basel before relocating to Britain, where he underwent training at the Royal Military College, Woolwich. Engaging in military service during the 1756 hostilities with France, Des Barres drew the attention of General James Wolfe, who admired his charting skills. Collaborating with the future explorer James Cook, he contributed to a monumental chart of the St. Lawrence River. Des Barres gained lasting recognition for the Atlantic Neptune, a remarkable multi-volume collection of sea charts and coastal views. Overseen by Des Barres in Nova Scotia after the Seven Years’ War, these works, created with the assistance of up to twenty engravers and assistants, played a crucial role for the Royal Navy in the American Revolution. Post-Revolution, Des Barres served as lieutenant governor of Cape Breton Island (1784-1787) and later as governor of Prince Edward Island (1804-1812). Living to the remarkable age of 102, he was laid to rest in Halifax after his funeral at St. George's Round Church in 1824.
 
This chart is in very good condition; the lower margin is a bit browned.