Gerrit de Veer's Account of Willem Barentsz' Search for the Northeast Passage

Three Voyages in Search of Asia

Gerrit de Veer’s Account of Willem Barentsz’s Search for the Northeast Passage recounts three Dutch expeditions undertaken in 1594, 1595, and 1596–1597. Merchants and scholars hoped to find a shorter sea route to China and the Spice Islands north of Russia. De Veer shapes observations of coastlines, ice, weather, wildlife, and navigation into a vivid chronicle of early modern exploration.

He knew the first voyage from Willem Barentsz’s notes and participated in the second and third himself. In 1594, the explorers believed that the passage had almost been found, but the large expedition of 1595 was defeated by impenetrable ice in the Kara Sea. In the book, these first two voyages lead toward the undertaking that made Barentsz and his companions famous.

Trapped in the Ice of Novaya Zemlya

In 1596, two ships sailed under Jacob van Heemskerck and Jan Cornelisz Rijp. The voyagers reached Bear Island and Spitsbergen before separating. Barentsz searched for a route north of Novaya Zemlya, but the ship became trapped and so badly damaged that the crew was forced to winter ashore.

Using driftwood and timbers from the ship, they built the “Behouden Huys,” or “Saved House.” Day by day, De Veer records cold and darkness, scarce fuel, illness, polar bears, and Arctic foxes, as well as religious celebrations and attempts to preserve order and fellowship. The ambitious voyage of discovery becomes an exceptionally precise story of human survival.

The Return in Open Boats

After about ten months, the men abandoned their shelter. Since the ship could not be saved, they began the return journey in two open boats. They struggled through ice and storms, guarded their provisions, and cared for the sick. Willem Barentsz died on the way, and other companions also failed to survive.

Twelve of the original seventeen men eventually reached the Kola Peninsula, where Dutch ships carried them home. They returned to Amsterdam in November 1597. De Veer’s narrative remains the principal source for the wintering and the crew’s dramatic voyage to safety.

Maps and Images of an Arctic Ordeal

The first edition, published by Cornelis Claesz in Amsterdam in 1598, bears the compelling title Waerachtighe beschryvinghe van drie seylagien, ter werelt noyt soo vreemt ghehoort. The oblong volume comprises 61 leaves of text and contains 28 engraved plates and three maps by Baptista à Doetechum.

The images show ships among ice floes, encounters with polar bears and walruses, coastal profiles, camps, and the crew at work. The maps preserve newly acquired geographical knowledge. Its horizontal format gives particular breadth to coastlines and frozen seas. Text, map, and image combine eyewitness testimony with unusually vivid documentation.

A Narrative That Reached across Europe

De Veer’s book appeared when the publication of current travel accounts was not yet an established tradition in the Netherlands. Its direct style and dramatic illustrations quickly attracted a wide readership. Latin, French, and German versions appeared in 1598, followed later by Italian and English translations.

The passage itself remained undiscovered, yet the narrative preserved a different kind of achievement: knowledge gained under extreme conditions. Commercial ambition, nautical skill, scientific curiosity, and human endurance meet within its pages. The failed expedition thus became one of the most compelling records of early European Arctic exploration.