Leeuwin (1621)

Leeuwin ("Lioness", also spelt Leeuwine in some Dutch East India Company (VOC) documents), was a Dutch galleon that discovered and mapped some of the southwest corner of Australia in March 1622.

It was captained by Jan Fransz[1] and was the seventh European ship to sight the continent.

[4] The same is suggested by the 1644 instructions to Abel Tasman, which states that "[I]n the years 1616, 1618, 1619 and 1622, the west coast of the great unknown South-land from 35 to 22 degrees was unexpectedly and accidentally discovered by the ships d'Eendracht, Mauritius, Amsterdam, Dordrecht and Leeuwin, coming from the Netherlands.

This map includes a section of coastline labelled 't Landt van de Leeuwin beseylt A° 1622 in Maert ("Land made by the ship Leeuwin in March 1622"), which is thought to represent the coast between present-day Hamelin Bay and Point D'Entrecasteaux.

[4] Portions of this coastline are labelled Duynich landt boven met boomen ende boseage ("Dunes with trees and underwood at top"), Laegh ghelijck verdroncken landt ("Low land seemingly submerged") and Laegh duynich landt ("Low land with dunes").