In September 1578, while sailing near Greenland’s southernmost point at Cape Farewell, captain James Newton of the Emmanuel recorded in his log the first sighting of an island “seeming to be fruiteful, full of woods, and a champion countrie.” The island came to be known as Buss, after the type of boat that discovered it – the Emmanuel being a short, two-masted herring buss. And despite its non-existence, Buss Island appeared on nautical maps of the area well into the 19th century, making it one of the more persistent of the many phantom islands that once dotted maps of the North Atlantic.
The existence of Buss Island was first made public in a book written by George Best in the same year of its discovery, called A True Discourse of the Late Voyages of Discouerie for Finding of a Passage to Cathaya by the North-Weast, under the Conduct of Martin Frobisher, Generall. It appeared on the Molyneux globe (1592) and a Plancius map (1594), and was again spotted in 1605 by James Hall, albeit in a different place from where he expected it. No matter: Buss Island continued to make regular map appearances, was deemed as real as Frisland (another fabrication since disproved – and mentioned earlier on this blog) or Greenland (which still exists). It was sighted again in 1668 by Zachariah Gillam, captain of the Nonsuch (sic).
The 1671 claim by Thomas Shepherd, captain of the Golden Lion, to have visited, explored and mapped the island extensively, led to an royal charter and an expedition aimed specifically at Buss. Shepherd’s description was tantalisingly precise (this map by John Seller, from 1673, details Shaftesbury Harbour and Arlington Harbour and a small, outlying Shepherd Island, among other illegible data). But of course, the elusive island would only reveal itself to sailors not looking for it, not to those who sought it out. This stubborn refusal to be found, coupled with an increase of transatlantic traffic, caused the presumed size of Buss Island to shrink and later its very existence to be questioned. Eventually, it was presumed the island had ’sunk’, a theory that reconciled the earlier, incontrovertible eyewitness reports with its obvious absence.
It took another Arctic expedition to also put the sinking theory to rest. In 1818, the Isabella, captained by John Ross (and still looking, as Frobisher had been, for the Northwest Passage) established that there were no shallows in the area proposed for Buss’s sinking. Ironically, Ross himself mistook a North Atlantic mirage for dry land, naming it “Crocker Hills”; the controversy of their either-or-not-existence would later dent his reputation (which was later redeemed by his discovery of the magnetic north pole, and the heroic, 4-year expedition during which he made it).
Only in 1856 would Buss Island disappear from the last nautical charts, the rich potential of its existence finally yielding to the disappointing reality of its un-discovery. The only mysteries remaining are what might have been mistaken for Buss Island: mirages? Parts of Greenland? Lies or delusions to make a dreary North Atlantic trip more interesting?
This map taken from this page at Cape May Magazine.
Looks like they’d just discovered the Isle of Wight.
Comment by Rob — August 19, 2009 @ 1:06 am
Farley Mowat has a very interesting discussion of Frisland (not sure if he mentions Buss) in his pseudoscientific but nonetheless fascinating book The Farfarers. His theory, in a nutshell, is that seafaring Celtic whalers / sealers were driven out of the Hebrides / Orkneys / Shetlands by the Norse, found haven in Iceland, eventually were followed there, and then went to Greenland, then Labrador, chased at each step by the Norse who followed them generally about 150 years later, and keeping up increasingly attenuated trade links with consumers of walrus tusks and such in continental Europe. Eventually (in his narrative) they end up in Newfoundland, where they become the Jackatars, who I understand were short dark European-looking natives. Frisland is believed by him to be either Celtic-inhabited Iceland or southern Labrador, I can’t remember which, as decribed by European traders who were dealing with the Celts, but eager to protect the source of their goods from rival merchants.
I can’t say that I put much stock in the theory as a theory, but it’s a wonderful book, a great beach read for anyone who likes strange maps and speculative history. Highly, highly recommended.
Comment by Alex — August 19, 2009 @ 1:45 am
[...] island “seeming to be fruiteful, flooded of woods, and a endorse … The rest is here: 407 – Buss, the Un-Discovered Island « Strange Maps Posted in Uncategorized | Tags: a-champion-, a-lot-more, champion-, gold-doubloons, his-log, [...]
Pingback by 407 – Buss, the Un-Discovered Island « Strange Maps | Cayman island online — August 19, 2009 @ 4:04 am
“They were all, one might say, nonexistent, but each nonexisted in an entirely different way.” –Lem, The Cyberiad.
Comment by Jim Fowler — August 19, 2009 @ 4:23 am
Since it’s discovery the island has drifted to the mediterranean and is currently knowk as Mallorca. Shape of the island and position of the mountain range have hardly changed!
Comment by Erik Buitenhuis — August 19, 2009 @ 7:51 am
The following is a brieflisting of books dealing with, or having chapters on, vanishing islands.
Percy Adams TRAVELERS AND TRVEL LIARS
William Babcock LEGENDARY ISLANDS OF THE ATLANTIC
O.R. Dathorne IMAGINING THE WORLD
L. Sprage de Camp & Wiley Ley LANDS BEYOND
Clark Firestone THE COASTS OF ILLUSION
Steven Frimmer NEVERLAND
Robert Fuson LEGENDARY ISLANDS OF THE OCEAN SEA
Donald Johnson PHANTOM ISLANDS OF THE ATLANTIC
Alberto Manguel & Gianni Guadalupi THE DICTIONARY OF IMAGINARY PLACES
Samuel Morison THE EUROPEAN DISCOVERY OF AMERICA
Raymond Ramsay NO LONGER ON THE MAP
Seyvour Schwartz THE MISMAPPING OF AMMERICA
Godron Speck MYTHS AND NEW WORLD EXPLORATION
Henry STommel LOST ISLANDS
Comment by J. B. Post — August 19, 2009 @ 12:21 pm
On a not-so-serious note, it would seem this kind of thing [disappearing islands and such] could have been among the inspirations of the writers of the TV show Lost?
Comment by GeorgeK — August 19, 2009 @ 12:46 pm
Is there some unsubstantiated theory about the hollow earth, or something, where there is corporeal land on the underside of the surface of the earth. It’s portal apparently lies somewhere around the Arctic circle. This article made me think of that.
Comment by James I — August 19, 2009 @ 2:10 pm
given the difficulties in determining longitude before the 18th century my guess would be it was either Labrador or some part of the Canadian mainland.
Comment by Ian Gould — August 19, 2009 @ 2:22 pm
Unless the mapmaker is as cavalier about the scale of the sealife as he is about the existence of the island, I think they also discovered the elusive Nessie on that trip too… (Or is that just a REALLY giant swan bottom right?) Best ask the walruses; I bet they know what’s what.
Comment by Andrea Flowers — August 19, 2009 @ 4:47 pm
I don’t understand your “(sic)” following Nonsuch. The meaning of that word is, roughly, “unmatched or unrivaled thing.” Or, more simply, “unique.” I could be misinterpreting, but I believe you thought it meant “none such as this” or “imaginary,” which WOULD be amusing, given that the captain was discovering something that did not exist.
Comment by JPC — August 20, 2009 @ 7:46 am
wow.. a treasure map i think…
Comment by watzabatza — August 20, 2009 @ 11:53 am
@GeorgeK:
It does kind of have the same shape, so maybe.
Comment by Sam Huddy — August 20, 2009 @ 4:36 pm
@ Erik Buitenhuis, you’re right! It *does* look like Mallorca! I wonder if the “discoverer” had the island in mind when he drew the map…
Comment by Caenwyr — August 21, 2009 @ 8:45 am
One really odd thing about this map – it doesn’t cover the western end of the island. Why on earth did the mapmaker (“John Soller”), who added various elaborate decorations, and allowed extra space at the top and bottom, cut off the western end?
11 JPC: “Nonsuch (sic)” because the word is normally spelled “nonesuch”.
I note also that “Soller” titles himself “Hidrographer [sic] to the King”.
Comment by Rich Rostrom — August 21, 2009 @ 11:39 pm
[...] 407 – Buss, the Un-Discovered Island « Strange Maps [...]
Pingback by igorbrejc.net » Fresh Catch For August 26th — August 26, 2009 @ 5:06 pm
Yeah, it looks like Mallorca: the mountains, the bays and the shape. But the history of a lost island is more cool :)
Comment by Custom maps — September 4, 2009 @ 3:11 pm
I’ve found the island, near Canary Islands, but underwater, see it in my link
Comment by Tibicenas — September 10, 2009 @ 12:12 pm
[...] zu Tage lächelt man ja über Karten aus dem Mittelalter auf denen ganze Flächen leer sind, oder liest ungläubig Geschichten wie die von der Insel Buss, die 1578 in der Nähe von Grönland “entdeckt” wurde und [...]
Pingback by Seltsame Karten at Nestoria Deutschland Blog — September 18, 2009 @ 3:17 pm
I think the Dutch 17th Century seafarers called it the island Bresil: when they passed the spot, they saw huge flocks of birds, which normally indicated the proximity of land. Hence they deduced the existence of an island, which turned out to be non-existent in its own unique way. But what these birds were doing there, I suppose we’ll have to ask them, and not the sailors.
Comment by rj — October 30, 2009 @ 12:24 pm