In the 1860s railways and steamers were in full development and natural obstacles on their way were removed with titanic engineering works. In Italy, the Frejus and San Gottardo tunnels in the Alps were opened in 1871 and 1882. On November 17, 1869, in the presence of the world’s highest authorities, the Suez Canal was officially inaugurated. The Suez Canal connected the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez, providing for a more direct route to India (strategic for the British Empire), Indonesia (strategic for the Kingdom of the Netherlands), China and Japan.
The Italian contribution
Two days before the inauguration of the Suez Canal, Giuseppe Sapeto - missionary, explorer and agent for the Italian government - purchased from sultan brothers Ibrahim and Hassan ben Ahmad a small plot of land (about six kilometer long) between Mount Ganga and Cape Lumah, on the coast of Eritrea, for the sum of 6,000 thalers. Although Sapeto had been mandated by the Italian government, the contract was in the name of Rubattino, a company based in Genoa, to avoid possible negative reactions from other European powers interested in the Red Sea, in particular France. The idea was to make it a staging and refueling station for coal, water and supplies for steamers heading to the Indies. Only in 1882 did the bay of Assab officially pass to the Kingdom of Italy, after France occupied Tunisia in 1881.
The existing nautical charts were deemed insufficient to guarantee safety of navigation in the Red Sea and in the Indian
Geodetic survey along the coasts of Eritrea, 1910, Genova, Istituto Idrografico della Marina
Cesare Vimercati, Panorama del Basso Egitto - Canale Artificiale di Suez, Firenze, Litografia Toscana, 1869, private collection
A view of the Bay of Assab with an Italian vessel in the background, Parigi, 1870, Roma, Museo Africano
A bit of history
Italian hydrographic campaigns in the Red Sea and in the Indian Ocean
In the 1860s railways and steamers were in full development and natural obstacles on their way were removed with titanic engineering works. In Italy, the Frejus and San Gottardo tunnels in the Alps were opened in 1871 and 1882. On November 17, 1869, in the presence of the world’s highest authorities, the Suez Canal was officially inaugurated. The Suez Canal connected the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez, providing for a more direct route to India (strategic for the British Empire), Indonesia (strategic for the Kingdom of the Netherlands), China and Japan.
The Italian contribution
Two days before the inauguration of the Suez Canal, Giuseppe Sapeto - missionary, explorer and agent for the Italian government - purchased from sultan brothers Ibrahim and Hassan ben Ahmad a small plot of land (about six kilometer long) between Mount Ganga and Cape Lumah, on the coast of Eritrea, for the sum of 6,000 thalers. Although Sapeto had been mandated by the Italian government, the contract was in the name of Rubattino, a company based in Genoa, to avoid possible negative reactions from other European powers interested in the Red Sea, in particular France. The idea was to make it a staging and refueling station for coal, water and supplies for steamers heading to the Indies. Only in 1882 did the bay of Assab officially pass to the Kingdom of Italy, after France occupied Tunisia in 1881.
The existing nautical charts were deemed insufficient to guarantee safety of navigation in the Red Sea and in the Indian
Geodetic survey along the coasts of Eritrea, 1910, Genova, Istituto Idrografico della Marina
Cesare Vimercati, Panorama del Basso Egitto - Canale Artificiale di Suez, Firenze, Litografia Toscana, 1869, private collection
A view of the Bay of Assab with an Italian vessel in the background, Parigi, 1870, Roma, Museo Africano
Ocean from the very beginning, as they were outdated and their coverage was only partial. The Istituto Idrografico della Regia Marina was thus asked to undertake long and extensive hydrographic, geodetic and topographic surveys. Hydrographers and surveyors operated in extreme weather and in dangerous conditions, surrounded by the hostility of the local population. Their work has become a valuable heritage from the historical, geographical and cultural point of view.
The first campaigns
They started with the triangulation of the bay of Assab. Having completed the topographical survey, they proceeded with the hydrographical survey and they determined latitude, longitude and magnetic declination. The hydrographic survey of the port of Massaua and surrounding areas, characterized by sand banks and submerged rocks, started in 1886.
In 1898, when Italy declared their interest in the stretch of Somali coast from the Gulf of Aden to the mouth of the Juba River (the rest was in the hands of the British), all military units in the area contributed to the study and survey of the area. The Royal Staffetta carried out an outstanding job in the 1898-1899 campaign, as the area was particularly quiet at the time. Surveys of anchorages and astronomical determinations were used by the Istituto Idrografico to issue updated charts, replacing the outdated French and English charts built in the early 19th century.
A decade later, the Staffetta surveyed over 390 kilometers of coastline and 30 kilometers of the river Juba, with four complete astronomical stations (latitude, longitude and azimuth), eight azimuth determinations, 241 geodetic stations, 406
Guido Cora, Carta originale del paese degli Afar o Danakil e regioni limitrofe, Torino, 1885, private collection
Stocking building materials in Massaua, 1892, Il Telegrafo a Vapore
The Staffetta, used by the Italian Royal Navy for many hydro-ocea-nographic surveys in the Red Sea and in the Indian Ocean, 1899, Roma, Ufficio Storico della Marina Militare
topographic stations, three tidal stations and seven magnetic stations, resulting in two 1:250,000 scale charts. Surveys were carried out in 1910-1911 in Massaua and Mogadishu, resulting in thorough mapping of the seabed up to 20 miles off the coast and updated coastal charts.
The Twenties
During the Great War all scientific activities were suspended. In the spring of 1923, however, the direction of the Istituto Idrografico suggested that hydrographic research in Eritrea be continued and the Ministry of the Navy invited the Italian Thalassographic Committee to take part in the campaign, carrying out biological and oceanographic research while hydrographers surveyed the waters from Italian Royal Vessel Ammiraglio Magnaghi.
The campaign began in Port Said on October 3 and ended on June 7, 1924.
In 1928 the Ammiraglio Magnaghi was used to carry out hydrographic surveys in the archipelago of Dahlak, separated from the mainland by the Massaua channel, consisting of 126 islands. Hydrographic surveys in Eritrea and Somalia had been partial and piecemeal and needed to be jointed together to cover the whole area under Italian jurisdiction. Topographic surveys needed to be completed, too. The idea of carrying out extensive surveys in the Red Sea and in the Indian Ocean was beginning to take shape, and the survey vessel was sent to identify the areas where to start.
Touring Club Italiano, Carta della città e del porto di Massaua, 1:15.000 scale chart, Milano, A. Vallardi, 1929, private collection
Surveying from the Staffetta in the Red Sea, 1910, Genova, Istituto Idrografico della Marina
Topographic survey near the Red Sea, 1928, Roma, Ufficio Storico della Marina Militare
topographic stations, three tidal stations and seven magnetic stations, resulting in two 1:250,000 scale charts. Surveys were carried out in 1910-1911 in Massaua and Mogadishu, resulting in thorough mapping of the seabed up to 20 miles off the coast and updated coastal charts.
The Twenties
During the Great War all scientific activities were suspended. In the spring of 1923, however, the direction of the Istituto Idrografico suggested that hydrographic research in Eritrea be continued and the Ministry of the Navy invited the Italian Thalassographic Committee to take part in the campaign, carrying out biological and oceanographic research while hydrographers surveyed the waters from Italian Royal Vessel Ammiraglio Magnaghi.
The campaign began in Port Said on October 3 and ended on June 7, 1924.
In 1928 the Ammiraglio Magnaghi was used to carry out hydrographic surveys in the archipelago of Dahlak, separated from the mainland by the Massaua channel, consisting of 126 islands. Hydrographic surveys in Eritrea and Somalia had been partial and piecemeal and needed to be jointed together to cover the whole area under Italian jurisdiction. Topographic surveys needed to be completed, too. The idea of carrying out extensive surveys in the Red Sea and in the Indian Ocean was beginning to take shape, and the survey vessel was sent to identify the areas where to start.
Touring Club Italiano, Carta della città e del porto di Massaua, 1:15.000 scale chart, Milano, A. Vallardi, 1929, private collection
Surveying from the Staffetta in the Red Sea, 1910, Genova, Istituto Idrografico della Marina Topographic survey near the Red Sea, 1928, Roma, Ufficio Storico della Marina Militare
The Thirties
The Royal Navy General Staff authorized the Istituto Idrografico della Regia Marina to organize the campaign and from 1933 to 1939 extensive hydrographic surveys were carried out, covering the coasts and anchorages in
Eritrea and Somalia. It was a very important result, actively contributing to the safety of navigation in one of the busiest areas on the globe. The Istituto used the collected data to issue three 1:1,000,000 scale charts, seven 1:300,000 scale charts, one 1: 150,000 scale chart, two 1: 60,000 scale charts and sixteen anchorage charts.
Water sampling with E. Bruam bottles and Leblanc equipment on board the Ammiraglio Magnaghi, 1924, Roma, Ufficio Storico della Marina Militare
The Ammiraglio Magnaghi at La Spezia,
17 dicembre 1914, Roma, Ufficio Storico della Marina Militare
Surveying from the Ammiraglio Magnaghi, 1924, Roma, Ufficio Storico della Marina Militare