Two rare 17th Century Spanish documents have been put on display at the New South Wales State Library.
Known as the Quieros Memorials, the documents are petitions from the Portuguese explorer Pedro Fernandes de Quieros to the Spanish King, requesting money to explore the Pacific.
The library says the 400-year-old documents cost $865,000 dollars and are considered the most valuable of all printed Australian historical artefacts.
Cartographer Robert Clancy says the documents tell the story of a man desperate to discover the Great Southern Land, but who died before he was granted the funds.
Dr Clancy spoke to Laura Murphy-Oates about the significance of the memorials to Australian history.
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