François Valentijn

François Valentijn, born at Dordrecht on 17 April 1666, studied theology at Leiden and served from 1685 as a minister of the Dutch Reformed Church in the East Indies, chiefly at Amboina, across two tours; he came back to Holland in 1714, settled at Dordrecht to work up his papers, and died in August 1727. His great compilation ‘Oud en Nieuw Oost-Indien’, the Old and New East Indies, ran to five volumes in eight folio books published between 1724 and 1726.

The account of Ceylon fills 462 pages of the fifth volume, the most extensive treatment he gave any country, illustrated with thirty-one plates: a large map of the island, charts of its forts, churches and cities, and scenes of its social life and history. For the maps and plans he was granted access to the Company’s Secret Atlas. He compiled rather than drew, yet his folios carried the fullest picture of Ceylon then in print.