Plate 19 from 'The Little Sea Torch: or True Guide for Coasting Pilots...Translated from the French of Le Sieur Bougard, with corrections and additions, by J. T. Serres' (London: Published for the author, by J. Debett, Piccadilly; and also by Messrs, G. and W. Nicol, Booksellers to his Majesty, 1801). 'The Little Sea Torch' was an illustrated coasting pilot guide based on Rene Bougard's 'Le petit flambeau de la mer' published in 1684. Serres, who was the Marine Painter to the King, added views of headlands, ports, lighthouses, landmarks, topography, coastal scenes, ships, rowing boats, and harbor entrances. The guide had 127 hand-colored aquatint plates after J. T. Serres, a list of subscribers, a table of soundings, and an index.
Two colored views of the coast of Palermo (top) and the Harbor of Malta as seen approaching the New City of La Valette (bottom). At the top, Mount Pellegrino is prominently in the center and at its base are white houses and walls. A three-masted ship and a sail fishing boat are in the foreground. Below, the viewer emerges from a narrow channel between two fortress walls into a busy harbor with sail fishing boats and large ships.
