
1636
Klein Amsterdam and Wessel (Gerrit Thomas Pool)
Under the orders of the new Governor-General of Batavia, Anthonie van Diemen, Gerrit Thomas Pool in the Klein Amsterdam and Wessel, with Pieter Piertszoon aboard as merchant, charted the coast to the west of the Gulf of Carpentaria.
After Pool was killed in New Guinea, Piertszoon assumed command. Before returning to Java, he sighted the Coburg Peninsula, Melville Island and the entrance to Dundas Strait. The region was later named Maria’s Land and Van Diemen’s Land (not to be confused with the former name of Tasmania).
