Map/Chart > The Persian Collection

Abu Thabi (Abu Dhabi)

A significant, previously unpublished, manuscript plan of the port and town of Abu Dhabi

Further Information

This chart is available in the following standard sizes and formats

This small chart and plan of Abu Dhabi dates from 1833 and was drawn by Captain Haines of the ‘Bombay Marine’ as part of an on-going survey of the region undertaken by the naval branch of the Honourable East India Company.  The hydrographic part of the survey was added to between 1858 & 1860 by Commander (later Captain) Charles Golding Constable, also of the Bombay Marine service, the second son of the celebrated British landscape artist, John Constable.

The chart depicts 'Abu-Thabi'(Abu Dhabi) as a small but significant settlement in 1833.  It includes the location of a fort, Qasr Al Hosn, which is the main historic landmark in present day Abu Dhabi.  The fort, like many such structures, started life as a simple structure - a tower - dating from around 1760.  It was built to help guard a precious water source from raiders.  The tower was later (1793-1816) developed into an impregnable fort. By 1845, Abu Dhabi had transformed itself from a small fishing village built of palm huts - depicted on the chart - to a thriving town, the true seat of power in the region with this imposing palace-fort at its heart.  The fort is currently being restored as part of modern-day Abu Dhabi's cultural heritage program. The coastline depicted on the chart follows what is effectively the line of the modern day 'Corniche', the main coast road of the city.  In the bottom right of the chart is a 'view' of what the town looked like from the sea in 1833.  The view depicts buildings, with the Quasr Al Hosn fort dominating the skyline.  Of note is that the 'view' on the chart is in fact inverted, whereby one needs to look at it from the bottom right, or land-side, to imagine the view from the sea.