Very interesting thread, I stumbled across by web search. I have been studying the so-called Palmer-Kidd charts/maps (I prefer to call them maps than nautical charts) for many years and am writing a lengthy article for a journal. Some of my observations:
1. The Palmer-Kidd maps are almost certainly not what they purport to be, at least one (Hardy Chest) is a proven hoax. If you research the provenance of this map you cannot trace it beyond Arthur Hill Cutler (1930s), an antique seller who sold the Hardy Chest (with a map in its false bottom) to Hubert Palmer, a solicitor and collector of pirate artefacts. The Hardy Chest came with a pedigree note stating that the chest came from the "late Miss Pamela Hardy, great-niece of Captain T. Masterman Hardy", who bought it from by Ned Ward, one of Kidd's shipmates. According to this story, after T. Masterman Hardy died it was bequeathed by him to his brother John Hardy, whose great-grand-daughter was Pamela Hardy. The problem is - Pamela Hardy was not a real person. This provenance of the Morgan chest/map was entirely fabricated and this has long been known if you do some research. No records of Pamela Hardy exist. She was rumoured (by Harold T. Wilkins) to have died in Spain, but there are no death records and John Hardy was a childless bachelor (he had no daughter). Another major hole in the pedigree is John Hardy died before T. Masterman Hardy, so it was not possible for him to have even been bequeathed the Hardy Chest.
2. Pamela Hardy's name appears on dubious pedigree notices for objects said to have been owned by Lord Nelson. Many of these were apparently sold by Cutler and were acquired by Palmer. If you search for certain Lord Nelson objects, you find Pamela Hardy's name mentioned in auctions with similar pedigree notices but these are without doubt fabrications and the provenance was made up (none of the Nelson objects with Pamela Hardy's name attached are traceable to having once been is his or his family's possession.) There are numerous sources that discuss these objects not being not authentic (I have quoted a few below). Interestingly, some of these dubious objects found their way into museums but are now recognised as not being remotely genuine e.g., a
toy coach and horses (Royal Museums Greenwich) said to have been owned by Nelson's daughter:
Swords for Sea Service Volume 1
By National Maritime Museum (Great Britain),
William Edward May,
P. G. W. Annis (1970)
View attachment 2211129
I don't yet own
The Authentic Nelson (2005) but this book has information on page 87:
View attachment 2211132
There is also a
(deleted for rule violation) on a forum dedicated to Nelson:
3. According to Wilkins, Hubert Palmer also acquired another map from Arthur Hill Cutler, inside the Morgan Chest. Although the provenance of this chest is not proven to be a fabrication like the Hardy Chest, the evidence certainly suggests this object has a fake pedigree. According to Cutler, the Morgan Chest was given to him by a man named Dan Morgan, who claimed descent from Sir Henry Morgan, the lieutenant governor of Jamaica. Palmer received the chest from Cutler (Howlett, however, states Morgan directly sold it to Palmer, see below). Dan Morgan is not the same individual as the American revolutionary war general of the same name who was related to Henry Morgan. There is scant evidence of the 20th century Dan Morgan having existed, although according to Wilkins he knew him personally and quoted a letter from him in his book
Captain Kidd and his Skeleton Island (I have seen a photograph claimed to be Dan Morgan but it is by no means definitely him). However, even if a real individual, his claimed descent from Sir Henry Morgan is almost certainly a fabrication. There are no genealogical records showing this and the story of how he came across the Morgan Chest is hardly credible. If you search for sources about Dan Morgan, you suspiciously find little to nothing aside from Wilkin's books; later literature primarily quotes or relies on Wilkins.
4. Further, according to Wilkins, Hubert Palmer obtained a third map from Arthur Hill Cutler. This map was not inside a chest but a bureau. Wilkins provides very little information but the story goes, the bureau came from a "Mr. R" from London. Palmer had either discovered the map in the presence of Cutler (in his antique shop), or according to Howlett (see below) with his brother at home. There is no way to verify if this chest actually came from London and Cutler did not provide the actual name of the seller (only his first initial). The map which was found in the bureau is initialled "W.K. [William Kidd] 1669" with the name "Sarah" underneath. The problem with this date, is Sarah Bradley would not have used Kidd's name until they were married (~20 years later). This inconsistency points to map being a fake, and this is suggested as well by a forensic report (see below).
5. According to Wilkins, yet another (fourth) map came from Cutler who told Palmer he came into possession of a workbox (with a secret compartment); this map has been described as the "Skeleton Map" or "Key Chart". Little information is provided how Cutler obtained it, aside from the vague mention of an "old naval man". An analysis of the writing on the map by experts (see below) suggests with high probability this map is another fake.
6. There is a disagreement about the dates of when Hubert Palmer first saw or purchased the aforementioned four antiques (Hardy Chest, Morgan Chest, bureau and workbox) from Cutler, and secondly, who exactly discovered the maps inside them. According to Wilkins who had met with Palmer and corresponded with him directly by letters, Palmer had purchased three of these objects knowing the maps had already been found in them by previous owners (this version states Palmer himself found the secret map in the bureau in the presence of Cutler). In contrast, Anthony Howlett (author of the book "The Mystery of Captain Kidd's Treasure" in
World Wide Magazine, 1958) who corresponded with Elizabeth Dick (Palmer's housekeeper), shortly after Palmer died, stated that it was Palmer who discovered all of the maps. Wilkins and Howlett also disagreed on the dates of when Palmer purchased the two chests, bureau and workbox. These differences are
outlined by G. J. Bath in his book
1. The Maps: In Search of Skeleton Island. Bath prefers Wilkin's version of events while George Edmunds (
Kidd: The Search for his Treasure, 1996), Howlett's. Who is correct? Bath quotes private letters Palmer had sent Wilkins seemingly confirming Wilkin's version of events (how Palmer came into possession of the maps). Howlett's version is wildly inaccurate and even contradicts Palmer's own writings about how he acquired these objects and maps. That said, there are a few mistakes in Wilkin's accounts.
7. Much misinformation has been written online about experts confirming the authenticity of the maps. Part of this stems from (a) confusing the dating of the chests, bureau and workbox with the maps and (b) the writing on the maps with the date of the parchments. All the antiques undoubtedly pre-date the 20th century; various sources estimate late 17th to mid-18th century, when Captain Kidd was alive or within about half-a-century of his death (they were not made in the 20th century so were not recent when Palmer came across or purchased them), however, that does not mean the maps are that old (or the engravings on these objects such as an engraving on the bureau are 17th or 18th century). In 1951, one of the maps - from the bureau was forensically investigated by Home Office Forensic Science Laboratory; Bath and Edmunds both quote the outcome of the forensic report which concluded the cardinal points on the map "was not in use on maps for many years after the death of Captain Kidd" and that the ink used on the parchment was likely "produced about two hundred years after Kidd was hanged". Combined with other evidence, this report concluded the map being "a comparatively recent production on what might very well be an old sheet of parchment". Indeed, it is possible that the parchments are themselves old (17th century) but the ink or drawings on them are not as the forensic report concluded. You can see the cardinal point (compass star) on the bureau map:
View attachment 2211231
8. It has been claimed R. A. Skelton, Head of the Map Room at the British Museum in the late 1940s confirmed the Kidd-Palmer maps are authentic. This is incorrect; as
noted by an expert, Peter Barber (from the Map Library, British Library) in 2008:
Skelton only ever examined one of the maps, and concluded the parchment was late 17th century, not the ink or drawing.
Furthermore, Barber points out that the "cabinets" (i.e., the two chests and bureau) date to the mid-eighteenth century:
However, some sources date the bureau slightly earlier but the workbox apparently dates to the late 17th century. The antiques themselves are therefore a mix of late 17th to mid-18th century origin, while the parchments (the maps were drawn on) late 17th century. This is not surprising since as a hoax - the maps would not convince anyone if furniture/parchments appeared modern. Someone took old parchments but had used much more recent ink and drawing styles to make the maps. Barber is quoted by Bath as having personally seen the Skeleton Map and easily determined it was modern (20th century):
9. The question remains who was behind the hoax? Edmunds believes Wilkins made the fake maps but I think he is mistaken. The evidence instead points to Arthur Hill Cutler as the hoaxer who was the source for all four Kidd-Palmer maps and we know he definitely made up a false pedigree for the Hardy Chest. Secondly, Cutler sold many other antiques of dubious pedigree and provenance; his shop contained for example, many fake objects said to have been owned by Lord Nelson which were not and whose authenticity was widespread questioned. All that said, Edmunds should be applauded for both his books and diligent research. He also deserves credit for changing in mind in light of the overwhelming evidence the maps are hoaxes.
10. Is there a mystery left to solve? Arguably, yes. Despite the maps are not what they purport to be (Captain Kidd never drew or owned them), I think is is very likely the hoaxer (Cutler) buried a treasure in the late 1920s (possibly genuine pirate antiques in his collection) and provided clues on these maps that point to a real location. I am working on an article which will attempt to identify the spot. I also think Cutler provided both obvious and subtle hints these maps have a fake pedigree. For example, Ned Ward in the pedigree of the Hardy Chest is a nod to the late 17th century
humourist and satirist of the same name.
