Gezicht op Kaap de Goede Hoop vanuit de Tafelbaai - Jan Brandes

A 1787 topographical sketch by Jan Brandes depicting the profile of Table Mountain and Table Bay, annotated with geographical details.

This topographical drawing by Jan Brandes, dated 1787, captures the silhouette of Table Mountain and the surrounding peaks as viewed from Table Bay. Brandes, a Dutch clergyman and artist who travelled extensively through the Dutch East Indies and the Cape Colony, produced a vast collection of sketches that serve as visual records of his voyages. His work often combines precise geographical observation with the practical needs of a traveller documenting unfamiliar terrain.

The drawing features the distinct profile of Table Mountain, Lion's Head, and Signal Hill, rendered with a focus on outline and structural form. Brandes has annotated the sketch with Dutch labels, identifying the geographical features and providing brief notes on the terrain. Below the mountain range, the artist has included faint, preliminary sketches of ships anchored in the bay, providing a sense of scale and context to the maritime activity of the period. The composition is linear and functional, prioritising clarity over atmospheric effect.

As a historical document, the work offers insight into the eighteenth-century European perspective of the Cape. The use of ink and pencil on paper reflects the informal nature of a travel sketchbook, where the primary objective is the capture of information for later reference or personal record. The paper shows signs of age, with a warm, neutral tone that complements the delicate, thin lines of the drawing. This piece is part of a larger body of work held in the Rijksmuseum, which preserves the extensive travel journals and drawings of Brandes. It remains a clear example of the observational drawing practices employed by colonial-era travellers to map and understand the geography of distant ports.