JAPAN. Mercator-Hondius. 1606/1613.
Iaponia. 13"h x 18"w. Original color. Two short tears in margin repaired, otherwise excellent.

First appeared in 1606. This version appeared on p. 350 in the 1613 Latin edition of Gerardi Mercatoris Atlas Sive Cosmographae ... published by Jodocus Hondius, Amsterdam

Shows two of the larger islands: Honshu and Kyushu, and several smaller islands. Honshu is oriented east-west rather than northeast-southwest. Hokkaido, the second largest island of Japan, is not shown. Korea is shown as an island, and mainland China is at the left.

References:

Gohm, Antique Maps of Europe, the Americas, p. 65;

Humphreys, Antique Maps and Charts, p. 91 (color) and p. 127 (B&W);

Koeman, Atlantes Neerlandici, Me 22.

RICHMOND, VA. Gray. 1877.
Gray’s New Map of Richmond Henrico County, Virginia. Drawn from Official Surveys. A double-page map, 24 ¾”w x 16”h. Original wash and outline color. Faint damp stains in lower left and lower right corners extending an inch into the image. Otherwise, image in very good condition.

Imprint: Drawn, Engraved and Published by O.W. Gray & Son, Geographers; Manufacturers of Maps and Atlases, 10 North Fifth Street, Philadelphia. Jacob Chace Topographical Engineer, “Manager of Local Surveys.”

Published in The National Atlas Containing Elaborate Topographical Maps of the United States . . . (Philadelphia, O. W. Gray & Son, 1877.

A large-scale map (one inch = 1000 feet) showing Richmond and Manchester divided into wards. Inset: “South Part of Manchester”. The map shows “Richmond College”, “Hollywood Cemetery”, “Central Lunatic Asylum State of Virginia”, “Virginia Penitentiary”, and other sites.

RICHMOND, VIRGINIA. The Illustrated London News. 1861.
Richmond Henrico County Manchester and Springhill Chesterfield Co. (Virginia.). Above upper left: Sept. 7, 1861. The London Illustrated News. At the lower left: Drawn and Engraved by T. Ettling. Below the neatline: Richmond, Virginia, the Capital of the Confederate States of America. 6.7"h x 9.4"w. Some show through of image on other side.

Theodore Ettling (b 1823) was an engraver, lithographer and draftsman in Amsterdam before moving to London. He engraved several maps of the Civil War areas for the Illustrated London News.

The Civil War began on April 12, 1861 when Fort Sumter was bombarded. Richmond was chosen as the new capital of the Confederacy on May 21, 1861, and the government moved to Richmond from Montgomery in early June. The English were eager to learn about this civil war in their former colonies, and this is one of the earliest newspaper maps to depict Richmond. Hollywood Cemetery is on the outskirts of town. In town the State House, City Hall, State Armory and Medical College are identified. The James River & Kanawha Canal lead into the City from the west.

MARYLAND. Ogilby. 1671.
Noua Terrae-Mariae tabula. 12"h x 15"w. Color, possibly original. Light offsetting. Small spot. Paper slightly age-toned.

Published in John Ogilby's America (London, 1671). This is a derivative of the extremely rare "Lord Baltimore" map of the same title published in 1635. The 1635 map established boundary lines between Maryland and Pennsylvania at the 40th parallel and between Maryland and Virginia along the right bank of the Potomac River. In this 1671 version of the map, which used the same copper plate, a dedication to Cecil Calvert replaces a set of arms, and there are some minor differences in topographic details.

In 1632 King Charles I of England granted George Calvert, 1st Baron of Baltimore, the portion of Virginia lying between the 40th parallel and the right bank of the Potomac River. The area became Calvert's personal property, and he named it Maryland after Queen Henrietta Maria. Cecil (1605- 1675) was his son.

This map resembles the John Smith’s 1612 map of Virginia, and the cartographer probably copied much of Smith's map. It is the first map, since that of Smith, to present new information on the Maryland area. It adds two rows of trees at the north to reflect Baltimore's claims to more land in what is now southern Pennsylvania. North is to the right, as is the Smith.

References:
Burden, The Mapping of North America, 417;
Cumming, The Southeast in Early Maps, No. 67;
Morrison, On the Map, Fig. 13.
Papenfuse & Coale, Atlas of Historical Maps of Maryland, Fig. 5;
Phillips, List of Maps, p.39;
Pritchard & Taliaferro, Degrees of Latitude, 12.
Swem, Maps Relating to Virginia, 85.
Walters Art Gallery, The World Encompassed, 242 and Pl LII for the 1635 edition.

THE CAROLINAS. Speed. 1676. Only issue.
A New Description of Carolina.

Imprint: Sold by Tho: Basset in Fleetstreet. and Ric: Chiswell in St. Pauls Churchyard. Francis Lamb sculp. 15"h x 20"w. Color. Worm hole repaired. Very good condition.

Engraved by Francis Lamb, this map was printed only in the 1676 edition of John Speed's Prospect of the Most Famous Parts of the World, so is a relatively rare Speed map.

North is oriented to the right. At the North are the Powhatan (James) River and James Town. At the South is St. Augustine, Florida, the oldest continuously occupied European settlement in North America. A large "Ashley Lake" rests at the foot of the Appalachians. The “Outer Banks” are prominently featured. Croatan, the site of the lost English settlement of the 1580s is shown. Roanoke Island, Cape Fear, Charles Town, and Hilton's Head are among the features shown.

There are two pages of text in English about the Indians, the geography, the discovery and settlement, and the boundaries and governments of Carolina and Florida. Parts of the map and text about Carolina were based on a map and book by John Lederer about his exploration of Virginia and Carolina in 1671. Johnson states that "Prior to Lederer, the region had been cartographically barren, and his influence on subsequent mapping was considerable". As can be seen on the Speed map, that influence regarding the interior details is at least amusing.

References:

Cumming, The Southeast in Early Maps. Map 77;

Johnson. America Explored, p.136;

Potter. Country Life Book of Antique Maps, 155.

NEW ENGLAND. Bleau. 1635/1640.
Nova Belgica et Anglia Nova./I> 15"h x 20"w. Stains in wide margins well away from neatlines; image in very good condition. Latin text verso.

The map was prepared in 1635 by Willem Blaeu, the founder of the Blaeu firm. His sons Joan and Cornelis continued the family business after his death in 1638. The present map was published in Theatrum Orbis Terrarum (Amsterdam: Joan and Cornelis Blaeu, 1640).

This beautifully designed and expertly crafted map of New England is featured in many books about maps and map-makers. It is oriented with west at the top and extends from the fabled Norumbega (shown inland from Penobscot Bay in Maine) to the entrance to the Chesapeake Bay. According to Schwartz, this is "the first printed map that was decorated with canoes, bears, beavers, turkeys, and other animals". European ships and Indian canoes are at sea. Also, two types of Indian compounds are shown. The coast line is well detailed. Cumming indicates that some of the geographic details were derived from Adrien Block's manuscript map of 1614. Block Island, off the coast of Rhode Island, was named for Adrien Block and is shown on this map. The interior leaves much to speculation, and Lake Champlain is placed too far east.

References:

Burden, The Mapping of North America, 241;

Cumming, The Discovery of North America, 361; Deak, Picturing America, 27;

Goss, The Mapping of North America, 28;

Humphreys, Antique Maps and Charts, p. 143;

Koeman, Atlantes Neerlandici, Bl 22 (Map 6, America);

Schwartz & Ehrenberg, The Mapping of America,, Pl. 58;

Tooley, Maps and Mapmakers, Pl. 79.

B>NEW YORK. Montresor. State 2 of 4. 1775. Important Revolutionary War Map.
A Map of the Province of New York, with Part of Pensilvania. and New England from an Actual Survey by Captain Montresor, Engineer, 1775. Imprint: Published as the Act directs June 10th. 1775, by A. Dury, Dukes Court St. Martins Lane London. Dedication: To the Right Honourable Sir Jeffery Amherst … John Montresor Engineer. Lower right: P. Andrew Sculp. Four sheets laid on one piece of linen 57"h x 36"w. Framed. Light foxing in some areas. Some original outline coloring.

This is a detailed, large-scale map covering much of the Hudson River Valley and Long Island. Insets: upper left, “Continuation of Lake Champlain”; and upper right, “Continuation of Connecticut River”.

Engraved by Peter Andrews. Published by Andrew Dury in London. Second state of 4 with “Carillon Fort” on the west bank of Lake Champlain and “Ticonderoga” on the east bank.

This is a rare and important Revolutionary War map. According to Schwartz, this map is “a topographical map by an important British military engineer. One of the most detailed maps of New York region issued during the revolutionary era.” That “important British military engineer” was John Montresor (1736-1788?) who had fought in the French and Indian War and in Pontiac's Rebellion (1763); he knew the area very well. Montresor compiled his map of the Province of New York primarily from surveys done by other army engineers and from his own surveys in the vicinity of New York City and around the south shore of Lake Erie. The surveys were completed and the map was first published at the beginning of the initial engagements. Clearly, the English expected a war with the Colonists largely due to their objection to taxes levied on the Colonists to defray the costs of the French and Indian War. In 1765 General Thomas Gage, then Commander-in-Chief of the British forces in North America, ordered Montresor to supply him with a map of New York City and its surroundings. This present map had its beginnings in that task.

References:

Phillips, Maps, p. 502;
Sellers & Van Ee, Maps and Charts of North America, 1066;
Stevens and Tree. “No. 39: Comparative Geography” in Map Collectors’ Series (Fourth Volume) and in R. V. Tooley, The Mapping of America, p. 76, no. 42(b).

Illustrated:

McCorkle, New England in Early Printed Maps, no. 775.9;

Schwartz and Ehrenberg. The Mapping of America., Pl. 114;

Pritchard and Taliaferro, Degrees of Latitude: Mapping Colonial AmericaMap 45 and Figure 165.

FLORIDA. De Laet. 1630.
Florida, et Regiones Vicinae. 14”w x 11”h. Very good condition.

Map drawn by and probably engraved by Hessel Gerritsz (1580-1632) an engraver, cartographer, publisher and bookseller who had earlier apprenticed as an engraver to Blaeu. For this map he drew on the cartography of Jacques le Moyne (d. 1587), Cornelis Claesz (1560-1609), and the Mercator map “Virginiae Item et Floridae” of 1606.

Published in the second edition of Johannes de Laet, Nieuwe Wereldt ofte Beschrijvinge van West-Indien (Leiden: Elzeviers, 1630). Johannes de Laet was one of the founders of the Dutch West India Company in 1620; in 1621 he became its director and was in charge of Dutch interests in America. This is one of three maps of North America that were included in his important work on the Americas.

The Florida Peninsula is called “Tegesta provinc”. The Tequesta tribe lived along Biscayne Bay in what is now Miami-Dade County and in nearby coastal areas, so would have been encountered by explorers. Much of the other nomenclature was drawn from the Chaves/Ortelius map of 1584 with additional place names of “S. Augustin” (St. Augustine and “Bahia de Tampa” (Tampa Bay). Near the western border is the “Bahia del Spiritu Santo”, thought by some to refer to the Mississippi Delta. Other than the title, the name “Florida” does not appear on the map. There is no northern border but “Virginiae pars” is in the northeast with mountains labeled "Apalatcy Montes".

References:

Burden, The Mapping of North America, 232;

Cumming, Southeast in Early Maps, map 34 and Plate 24.

GEORGIA. Bowen. 1748. First detailed map of Georgia.
A New Map of Georgia, with Part of Carolina, Florida and Louisiana. Drawn from Original Draughts, adjusted by the most approved Maps and Charts. Collected by Eman. Bowen Geographer to his Majesty. 19”w x 14”h. Upper right: Vol. II. P. 323. Margins slightly toned and right margin is irregular. Image in very good condition.

Map by Emanuel Bowen (c1693-1767) geographer to King George II and one of the leading English cartographers of the eighteenth century. His apprentices included Thomas Kitchin (who became his son-in-law) and Thomas Jefferys.

Published in Volume II of John Harris, Navigantium Atque Itinerantium Bibliotheca: or, a Complete Collection of Voyages and Travels (London: Vol II in 1748). Of prime importance to America is the inclusion of this map. Cumming notes that “Harris first published his collection of voyages in 1705. For the 1744-1748 and 1764 editions a new chapter was added, giving a history of Georgia. It was for this added chapter that the map was made.”

The map was published 15 years after the founding of the colony (chartered 1732 and settled 1733). It is the earliest detailed map of Georgia and extends from the Atlantic Ocean west beyond the Mississippi River. It shows early settlements, such as Savannah, and the major trails throughout Georgia and to the west. Numerous Indian tribes are located, as well as areas where Indians were friendly to the English. Parts of Carolina, Florida and Louisiana are shown on the map, but the boundaries are not given.

Reference: Cumming, The Southeast in Early Maps, Map 267 and Color Plate 18.

COMETS & CONSTELLATIONS. 1668.
Figuras tabula uranoscopica, exhibens orbitas duorum istorum insignium Cometarium ... 1665 ... Henricus Ad ejusdem. 13 ½”w x 10”h. Beautifully colored with gold stars. Published in 1668.

At the upper left is Coma Berenic, a constellation in the northern sky near Leo that contains a prominent cluster of galaxies and the north pole of the Milky Way. It is called “Berenice's Hair” for Berenice, a queen of Egypt who promised her hair to Venus.

Below the Equator is the track of a comet observed from Hamburg, Germany passing Corvus on 22 November 1664 and Canis Major on 18 December 1664. The position is plotted for each day of that period.

The small constellation, Corvus, the Crow, was called the Raven by ancient Greeks. The story goes that Apollo sent the raven (crow) to collect water in the nearby cup, Crater , as shown on the map. But the bird wasted its time eating figs. Then, as an excuse for losing time, it gathered up the Water Snake (Hydra) in its claws and flew back, telling Apollo that this creature was the reason for its delay. Apollo would have none of it, and threw all three: the crow, the goblet, and the water snake, into the heavens. For penance, the crow was made to suffer eternal thirst (and this makes the bird caw raucously instead of sing like normal birds).

Canis Major is said to represent one of the dogs following Orion the hunter. Canis Major contains Sirius, the brightest star besides the Sun, Moon, Jupiter, and Venus as seen from Earth. Sirius is also one of the nearest. The star's name means “scorching”, since the summer heat occurred just after Sirius' rising past the sun. The Ancient Greeks referred to such times in the summer as “dog days”, as only dogs would be mad enough to go out in the heat, leading to the star being known as the Dog Star. Consequently, the constellation was named the Big Dog.

COMETS & CONSTELLATIONS. Doppelmayr/Homann. Published 1729 or 1742.
Globi Coelestis In Tabulas Planas Redacti Pars III in qua Longitudines Stellarum fixarum ad añum Christi completum 1730 tam Arithmetice quam Geometrice exhibentur â Ioh. Gabr. Doppelmayr... Opera Ioh. Bapt. Homanni Sac. Caes. Maj. Geogr. Norimbergae. 19”h x 23”w. Full color. Gilt.

This astronomical chart was first published in Volume 1 of Reiner Ottens (1698-1750), Atlas Maior cum generales omnium totius orbis regnorum.... (Amsterdam: sons of Joachim Ottens, with maps dated from 1641 to 1729.) See Phillips. This chart was more likely published in Atlas Coelestis in quo Mundus Spectabilis, (Nuremberg: Homann’s Heirs, 1742). Compiled by Johann Gabriel Doppelmayr (1677-1750) and engraved by Johann Baptist Homann (1664-1724) sometime between 1716 and 1724.

This atlas is considered Doppelmayr’s best-known astronomical work. Doppelmayr was an astronomer, cartographer, writer, mathematics professor and translator in Nuremberg. He collaborated with Homann to create a number of maps eventually published as indicated above. Ten of the thirty plates published in Atlas Coelestis are star charts. Six of these charts, including the present chart are “gnomonic” projections. In the gnomonic projection any straight line drawn on the chart is part of a great circle. The present chart (Pars III) is illustrated in Whitfield.

The chart is centered on the Equator. Constellations are shown positioned for the year 1730, mostly as figures according to classical mythology, but two are non-Ptolemaic constellations: Columba and Monoceros. Other constellations shown include: Canis Major, Lynx, Tigris, Gemini, Cancer, Hydra and Procyon. Paths of comets, year observed and name of observers such as Cassini and Hevelius are depicted. The chart is flanked by lists of the constellations.

Phillips, List of Atlases, 4257, Vol. 1, No. 7. Indicating only few copies were placed on the market.

Whitfield, The Mapping of the Heavens, pages 82-83.

Germany. Blaeu. 1635/1662.
Palatinatus ad Rhenum. Latin text verso with signature “Germania Aaaaaa”. Engraved.

By Joan Blaeu (c.1559-1773), son of Willem Blaeu (1571-1638).

Published in Atlas Maior (Amsterdam, Joan Blaeu, 1662). The plate was first used in 1635. There is a coat of arms in the upper right corner of the map. At the lower right is a map scale in a pedestal surmounted by a cherub holding a flag showing the keys to the map.

This is a map of the German region including Bingen, Mainz and Frankfurt in the north, Zweibrücken in the west, Heidelberg in the east center, and Stuttgart in the south east. Mountains are graphically depicted. The Rhine, Main and Neckar rivers are prominently shown.

Koeman, Atlantes Neerlandici, Bl 56, Vol 3, map 273. Plate first used in 1635 (Bl 5).

NORTH AMERICA. Morden. c.1695. Rare 1st State.
A New Map of the English Empire in America Viz. Virginia Maryland Carolina Pennsylvania New York New Iersey New England … by Rob: Morden.

Imprint: Sold by Robt. Morden at the Atlas in Cornhill. And by Christopher Brown at ye Globe near the Westend of St. Pauls Church: London. Lower right: I. Harris, Sculp: 20”h x 23”w. Toning at margins. Minor losses through neat lines top and bottom in facsimile. Separation along Mississippi River due to acidification repaired. Narrow margins. Backed on archival tissue. Good condition. Original outline color. Very attractive.

Robert Morden (fl.1669-d.1703) was a British bookseller, publisher, and maker of maps and globes in London. The engraver, John Harris (fl. c1685-c.1720), was one of the most important members of his profession during that period.

Bibliographers generally refer to this as the rare first state created circa 1695 (see below for a more detailed identification of states). It was published separately and appears in some composite atlases. It also appears in volume 2 of Frederik de Wit’s Atlas Maior (Amsterdam, [1706]?), The mainly known fourth state dated 1719 was published by John Senex in his A New General Atlas (London, 1721) using Morden’s map with a new title and imprint.

Morden extends the English American colonies westward at the expense of the French claims. At the left is the Mississippi River. Much of Canada is shown as English (outlined in green). At lower right is a large inset map of the North Atlantic, “A General Map of the Coasts & Isles of Europe Africa and America”. Just above that inset is the title cartouche surmounted by the royal arms of William III. An inset map of Boston Harbor, “The Harbour of Boston or Mattathusetts Bay”, is adjacent to the title.

Burden indicates there are four states of the map:

• State1. c.1698. This map, as described.
• State 2. c.1703. Longitudinal numbers rounded up, such as 93 to 95.
• State 3. c.1718. Imprints of Morden and Browne removed without replacements.
• State 4. 1719. Title cartouche states “Revis’d by Jon. Senex 1719”.

Illustrated and described:

• Burden, The mapping of North America II, map 750, using the date c.1698;
• Cumming, Southeast in Early Maps, 119 and illustrated on the dust jacket;
• Karpinski, Maps of Famous Cartographers, p. 109 and Pl. XII;
• Kershaw Early Printed Maps of Canada,II, 323 (his State 2 of 5);
• Pritchard & Taliaferro, Degrees of Latitude, pp. 358-360.

Reference:

• McCorkle, New England, 695.3;
• Phillips, List of Maps of America, p. 564 with a question mark by the date 1695;
• Phillips, List of Atlases, 549:
• Stevens & Tree, Comparative Cartography, 20 (a) for the Morden issue and 20 (b) for the Senex issue.

NORTH AMERICA. Homann Heirs. 1756.
America Septentrionalis a Domino d'Anville in Galliis edita nunc in Anglia Coloniis in Interiorem Virginiam deductis nec non Fluvii Ohio cursu aucta notisque geographicis et historicis illustrata. Imprint: Sumptibus Homanniorum Heredum. Norembergæ. Ao. 1756. 18”h x 20”w. Two faint stains. Very good condition. Hand color.

Appears in various atlases published by Homann Heirs. Based on the Jefferys map of 1755, North America from the French of M. d’Anville….. Map toponyms are in English, the title in Latin, and extensive notes in German relating to English and French territorial claims. There is a later (1777) more common version of this map.

The map extends from Labrador to Central Florida and west beyond the Mississippi River. It shows a large Virginia extending to the Mississippi River and north to the Great Lakes. The map was produced during The French and Indian War (1754–1763). The conflict resulted in the British conquest of all of New France east of the Mississippi River, as well as Spanish Florida. France's colonial presence north of the Caribbean was reduced to the tiny islands of Saint Pierre and Miquelon islands in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.

Illustrated in McCorkle, New England in Early Printed Maps, 756.1.

Reference Sellers & van Ee, Maps and Charts of North America, 68.

NORTH AMERICA. Homann Heirs. 1777.
America Septentrionalis a Domino d'Anville in Galliis edita nunc in Anglia Coloniis in Interiorem Virginiam deductis nec non Fluvii Ohio cursu aucta notisque geographicis et historicis illustrata et ad bellum praesentis temporis accomodata. Imprint: Sumptibus Homanniorum Heredum. Noremberge. Ao. 1777. 18”h x 20”w. Minor loss at centerfold . Worm holes in upper margin at centerfold. Margins and centerfold strengthened on verso. Heavy paper. Good condition. Outline color.

This map appears in various atlases published by Homann Heirs. Based on the Jefferys map of 1755, (Jean Baptiste Bourguignon d'Anville, 1697-1782.) The map toponyms are in English, the title in Latin, and extensive notes in German relate to English and French territorial claims. This map is an updated version of the Homann Heirs’ map published in 1756. The political boundaries now reflect the outcome of the French and Indian War (1754–1763) and the evolution of the American colonies. The title of the present map has the words et ad bellum praesentis temporis accomodata added before the imprint, the date is changed from 1756 to 1777, and there are some changes in the text.

Extends from Labrador to Central Florida and west beyond the Mississippi River. The boundaries of Virginia, the Carolinas, Georgia and Florida extend west to the Mississippi River.

McCorkle,New England in Early Printed Maps, 777.2.
Sellers & van Ee, Maps and Charts of North America, 69.

NOVA SCOTIA. Gentleman's Magazine. Porcupine Map. 1750.
A Plan of the Harbour of Chebucto and Town of Halifax. 9"h x 11”w. Short tear through right margin; very good condition. Colored.

Published in Vol. 20, Gentleman's Magazine, London, 1750, a year after the founding of Halifax on 21 June 1749 by the Edward Cornwallis, an uncle of the British General of Yorktown fame. According to Jolly, the map was probably engraved by Jefferys. Kershaw attributes the map to Moses Harris (1730-c.1788). He states: "Engraved upside down amongst the engraved 'vegetation' are the initials 'MH', presumably Moses Harris". These initials can be found adjacent to the word “formerly” in the title. The matter of authorship can be put to rest by the following quotation from Lennox:

“In 1749, nineteen-year-old Harris and his wife arrived at Chebucto on the ‘Winchelsea’ with the first group of settlers sent from England. Harris’s interests included nature and geography; he has studied entomology since his youth, and at age fourteen he began an apprenticeship with London geographer Charles Price ... shortly after his arrival [in Halifax] he produced three maps of the infant settlement. … The ‘Porcupine Map’ … which appeared in the Gentleman’s Magazine in 1750, is the most famous of Harris’s collection and is often admired more for the inclusion of insects and animals than for its cartographic depiction of Halifax.”

The “Porcupine map” is illustrated with Nova Scotia plants and three insects: a “White Admirable” butterfly, an “Orange Underwing Tyger” moth, and “The Musk Beetle”. A large porcupine, reportedly from Hudson's Bay, is shown in the lower right. Also shown are the ensign of Nova Scotia and coats of arms for seven baronets.

Jolly, Maps in British Periodicals, GENT-70;

Kershaw, Early Printed Maps of Canada, (Vol. III, p. 125);

Lennox, Jeffers, “An Empire on Paper: The Founding of Halifax” in Canadian Historical Review 88, pages 403-405.

Tooley’s Dictionary indicates Moses Harris made the manuscript plan for the map in 1749.

NORTH POLE. Barentsz. 1598. Rare map of Barentsz' final voyage.
Deliniatio cartae trium navigationum per Batavos, ad Septentrionalem plagam, Norvegiae, Moscoviae, et Novae Semblae ... Authore Wilhelmo Bernardo ... [and in Dutch] Beschryvinhe van de drie seylagien door de Hollanders gedaen ... door Willem Barents van Amstelredam vermaerde Piloot.

Imprint in cartouche at lower right above the scale: Auctore Wilhelmo Bernardo, Cornelius Nicolai excudebat. Baptista à Doetechum schulp. ao 1598. Oversize lettering at North Pole: Polus Arcticus. 16 ½”h x 22 ½”w. Strong engraving. Excellent condition. Drawn by Cornelius Nicolai and engraved by Baptista van Doeticum. Wilhelmo Bernardo is also known as Willem Barentsz (1550-1597). Note: This is not the de Bry derivative which is much smaller. This is a fine uncolored example of Willem Barentsz’ very rare and much sought-after map of the Arctic Pole, drawn posthumously from his recorded observations made during his third voyage of 1596-97. Fold lines suggest this map came from Huygen van Linschoten’s reprint of the Navigatio ac Itinerarium... (The Hague, 1598.) Linschoten had accompanied Barentsz on parts of his first two voyages so was aware of the importance of this map.

This highly decorative map contains more than 30 illustrations of sea monsters, whales, ships and the island “Polus Magnetis”. By the late 1300s the people of the Basque region (North-West Spain) were whaling at the Newfoundland Banks. By the end of the 16th century English merchant ships were being sent into the Arctic regions to look for whales.

Barentsz made three voyages (1594, 1595 and 1596-97) in search of the North East passage to Asia. He reached Novaya Zemlya on the first two expeditions, but failed to find the North East Passage. Despite the failure of the 1594 and 1595 voyages, Petrus Plancius (1552-1622), a Flemish astronomer, geographer and theologian, once more succeeded in convincing Amsterdam to approve of his plans to equip an expedition of two ships and find the passage. The commands of the two ships were given to Jan Cornelisz Rijp and Jacob van Heemskerck. Barentsz was the pilot. In early June 1596 they discovered Bear Island (T’veeer Eylandt on this map), called Bear Island because a polar bear was seen there. Later in June 1596 they discovered the westerly and north-westerly coasts of Spitsbergen, a Norwegian archipelago. After their return to Bear Island the ships separated. Rijp made one more attempt to go north, while Barentsz sailed to Novaya Zemlya to continue the old route along the west-coast. As shown on the map, Barentsz rounded the northern tip of Novaya Zemlya, but got caught in the ice. The crew was forced to overwinter there, and in May/June 1597, they began the return voyage in two smaller open ships. Willem Barentsz died about one week later. The crew finely arrived in Amsterdam in November 1597. Among the papers they brought with them was a manuscript of a map of the North Pole drawn by Barentsz.

For the attribution to Linschoten see pages 248-249 of Sea charts of the Early Explorers 13th to 17th Century (New York: Thames and Hudson, 1984.)

The map is described on page 6 and illustrated on Plate III in R.V. Tooley, “Printed Maps of Scandinavia” in Map Collectors’ Circle No. 70.

GULF STREAM. Franklin. 1786. From "Transactions of the American Philosophical Society."
A Chart of the Gulf Stream [and on the same sheet] “Remarks Upon the Navigation from Newfoundland to New-York, In order to avoid the Gulph Stream... by B. Franklin.” 8" h x 10"w (map only). Fold lines and offsetting. Engraved by James Poupard.

Published in "A Letter from Dr. Benjamin Franklin... Containing Sundry Maritime Observations", in Volume II, Transactions of the American Philosophical Society (Philadelphia, 1786) between pages 314 and 315. Benjamin Franklin had founded the American Philosophical Society, the oldest learned society in the United States, in 1743.

Shows the Gulf Stream along the eastern shore from Florida to Newfoundland, then turning southeast. Three ships are in the Gulf Stream, and arrows indicate the direction of flow. With an untitled, and unrelated, inset at the upper left “Annual Passage of the Herrings”. Near the end of Franklin's “Remarks” at the left of the chart he states: "The Nantucket whale-men being extremely well acquainted with the Gulph Stream,...this draft of that stream was obtained from one of them, Capt. Folger, and caused to be engraved on the old chart in London, for the benefit of navigators, by B. Franklin." The Gulf Stream had been well known to Spanish ship captains, who relied on it to sail from the Americas to the Iberian Peninsula, but Spanish secrecy kept this and many other charts and sailing instructions from other maritme nations.

Franklin "read" the paper to the Society in December, 1785. In the paper, covering this and several other items of maritime interest, Franklin states; "I then observed that it was a pity no notice of this current [the Gulf Stream] upon the charts, and requested him [Captain Timothy Folger] to mark it out for me, which he readily complied with, adding directions for avoiding it in sailing from Europe to North America. I procured it to be engraved [1768] by order from the general post-office, on the old chart of the Atlantic, at Mount and Page's, Tower-hill; and copies were sent down to Falmouth for the captains of the packets, who slighted it however; but it is since printed in France, of which edition I hereto annex a copy [the extremely rare La Rouge of 1785]”. The map was reengraved for the Transactions. According to De Vorsey, the 1768 map is missing. A reproduction copy of Franklin's paper will be provided with the chart. References:

Louis De Vorsey, “Pioneer Charting of the Gulf Stream...” Page 105, Vol 28, of Imago Mundi. Map is illustrated as Fig 2;

Phillips, List of Maps, page 592;

Wheat & Brun, Maps and Charts Published in America before 1800, 721.

GULF STREAM. Williams. 1793.
[Chart of the North Atlantic Ocean showing the Gulf Stream]. 8"h x 16"w. Three-inch repair of one fold line.

This untitled chart was published in "Memoir of Jonathan Williams, on the use of the Thermometer in discovering Banks, Soundings, &c.", in Volume 3, Transactions of the American Philosophical Society (Philadelphia, 1793). (Not included in this offer.)

A chart showing the Gulf Stream adjacent to the U.S. and Canada. Parts of Europe and Africa are at the right. The transatlantic tracks of 5 ships and the recorded water temperatures are shown. One such track was made in 1785 by a ship carrying Dr. Benjamin Franklin who pioneered the theory that the Gulf Stream could be located through the use of water temperatures. Jonathan Williams (1750-1815) was Franklin's nephew and accompanied Franklin on the 1785 voyage. Williams measured the water temperatures for Franklin on that voyage. But William's focus in his paper was not on the Gulf Stream; instead he proposed that the thermometer could be used in determining when a ship was approaching the shore or a bank. However, his map features the Gulf Stream. In November, 1790, Williams "read" his paper to the Society; on page 87 he states: "On the chart annexed the tracks of my several passages are marked ..." This indicates his chart dates from 1790, but may not have been published until 1792, the date given by Wheat and Brun. A reproduced copy of his paper will be furnished with the map. Benjamin Franklin had founded The American Philosophical Society in 1763.

References:

Louis De Vorsey, “Pioneer Charting of the Gulf Stream...” Page 105, Vol 28, of Imago Mundi.

Wheat & Brun, Maps and Charts Published in America before 1800, 724.

GULF STREAM. Duane. 1834. From Duane's Memoir of Franklin.
A Chart of the Atlantic Ocean, Exhibiting the Course of the Gulph Stream, &c. Under bottom neatline: Published by M’Carty & Davis Philiada. Upper left margin: Plate VIII. Upper right margin: Vol. II Page 373. 13 ¾”w x 12 ¼”h. Outline color. Lower half of right margin trimmed to neatline as issued. Image in very good condition.

First published by William Duane in Philadelphia in 1818 in Memoirs of the Life and Writings of Benjamin Franklin. Duane took over Benjamin Franklin's printing company when Franklin retired. The cartographer is unknown, so the map is known as the “Duane Map.”

This version with new imprint was published in Volume II of Memoirs of the Life and Writings of Benjamin Franklin (Philadelphia: McCarty & Davis, 1834). It was edited by Duane.

This interesting chart of the Atlantic depicts the Gulf Stream as Benjamin Franklin described it the late 1700s. The chart covers the Atlantic Ocean to include the coasts of North America, the British Isles, Africa, and Continental Europe. It also shows Iceland, Greenland, Cuba, the Bahamas and the Antilles. The northernmost part of the Gulf Stream flows toward Iceland and Norway then down to England and Ireland and returns to the southern Atlantic as the North Equatorial Current. The chart also shows numerous smaller currents originating in the Caribbean and joining the Gulf Stream as it flows south toward Africa.

EARLY POST ROAD RECONNAISSANCE. GPO. 1828.
Map of a Reconnaissance between Baltimore and Philadelphia exhibiting the several routes of the Mail-Road contemplated by the resolution of Congress approved on the 4th. of May 1826. Above bottom neatline: S. Bernard Brig’r. Gen’l. Member of the Board of Int’l. Impro’t. William Tell Poussin Cap’t. Top. Eng’s. and Assistant to the Board. 9"h x 30"w. The generous left margin is irregular. The image is in very good condition.

Published in House Doc. 94, Serial 152, 1827 and in Senate Doc 88, Serial 165, 20th Congress, 1st Session, 5 Feb 1828. In a letter from the Postmaster General John McLean transmitting a report prepared by Brigadier General S. Bernard, Member of the Board of Internal Improvement, and by Captain William Tell Poussin, Topographical Engineer and Assistant to the Board.

In 1825 Maryland petitioned the Congress for the improvement of the Philadelphia-Baltimore mail road. Service often was delayed due to road conditions and fording requirements. The United States Post Office agreed with Maryland. A survey party was established by Congress in 1826 to explore alternative mail routes between Baltimore and Philadelphia. The map shows the eight combinations of alternate post routes from Baltimore, over three potential crossing sites on the Susquehanna River and on to Philadelphia. The map extends from Baltimore on the left to Philadelphia on the right. North is placed at a 45 angle to the page to minimize blank spaces where the area was not of interest. The route recommended was #2 from Baltimore, Abingdon, Bush, Port Deposit Bridge, North East, Elkton, Newark, Staunton, Newport, Wilmington, Marcus Hook, Chester, Darby, Hamilton to Philadelphia. The route crossed the Susquehanna River at Port Deposit, a location where a privately constructed bridge already existed.

Reference Claussen & Friis, Descriptive Catalog of Maps Published by Congress 1817-1843, Numbers 7 (House version) and 9 (Senate version).

COLORADO TERRITORY. Case. FIRST PRINTED MAP OF COLORADO TERRITORY. 1861.
Map of Colorado Territory, Compiled from Government Maps & actual Surveys, Made in 1861.

Imprint: Denver City Nov. 1. 1861. Francis M Case Sur. Genl. Co. Ty. Upper right margin: Sen. Ex. Doc. No. 1. 37th. Cong 2nd. Sess. 21”w x 17 ¾”h. Fold lines. Light browning at one fold. Bottom and top of left margin cut narrow for binding in the report.

The formal Colorado Territory was established on February 28, 1861, and Colorado officially became a State in 1876. This is the first printed map of Colorado and is signed by Surveyor General Case only nine months after the territory was formally established. A partial grid is shown indicating the extent of survey lines accomplished and proposed. Case was later an engineer for several railroad projects and made the map “Union Pacific Rail Road Map of Part of Colorado Territory Showing Survey West of Denver City by Francis M. Case Civil Engineer 1863” (See Wagner-Camp, 412Afor that map.)

Mountains are shown by hachures. “Pikes Peak” is identified. A dozen towns are shown with Denver being emphasized with a street grid. Fort Garland is located in the South Central and Fort St. Vrain is in the North Central. In the West, the “Grand River” is today’s Colorado, and “Eagle Tail River” is today’s Gunnison River.

Fort Garland was established in 1858 to protect settlers in the San Luis Valley, then part of the Territory of New Mexico. Kit Carson and his volunteer unit were ordered to the fort in 1866 to keep the peace and negotiate with the Ute Indians. Regular troops returned in 1867 and Carson and his volunteers were mustered out.

Fort St. Vrain was built by Ceran St. Vrain and the Bent brothers in 1837 near present day Platteville, Colorado. Fort St. Vrain was a major trading post on the Platte River until 1848. The fort was allowed to fall into ruins. By 1951 little was left and the site was leveled for farming.

Fort St. Vrain was the site of Colorado's only Nuclear Power Plant. Work began at the site in 1968. The first commercial electric power using the reactor was generated in December 1976. Nuclear operations came to a close in 1989 due to continuing problems with the plant. Fort St. Vrain was the first commercial nuclear generating plant in the United States to be decommissioned.

Wheat, Transmississippi West, Vol. 5, 1034.

WESTERN HEMISPHERE. Allard. c1700.
Recentissima Novi Orbis, Sive Americae Septentrionalis et Meridionalis Tabula ex officina Caroli Allard.... 20"h x 23"w. Original full wash color. Some flecks of red paint in upper left, but not distracting.

Drawn by Philip Tideman (1657-1702). Engraved by Gilliam van der Gouwen (fl. 1669-1713).

Carole (Carel) (Carolus) Allard (1648-c1709) was an engraver and publisher in Amsterdam, publishing numerous maps and some atlases. Most of his atlases were compilations of his own maps and those of other publishers such as Blaeu, Jansson and Visscher. This map appeared in Allard's Atlas Minor, published in Amsterdam (c1700).

"The map of America by Allard is derived from that of Frederick de Wit, c. 1675" (Burden). Burden identifies four states. This map is State 3 with the New Zealand inset enclosed by a ruled border and with the climate descriptions in the borders. California is shown as a large island in the Guillaume Sanson style with an indented northern coastline. Just above California, an enormous land mass, "Terra Esonis", stretches across the Pacific to the Orient, dominating the top of the map. The Mississippi River is located too far west and empties into the Gulf near Mexico. New Mexico extends all the way to the Mississippi. Louisiana is shown high into Canada at the headwaters of the Mississippi. The "Rio del Norto" and the "Magdalena fl" divide from a single river at Santa Fe; the former flows southwest to the Gulf of California, the latter southeast to the Gulf of Mexico.

At the lower left is a large cartouche with two Indians, sugar cane, an armadillo and an alligator. In the corner is a small inset showing a highly distorted view of the northern coastline of New Zealand.

Burden, The Mapping of America II, 724, illustrated on p. 432;

McLaughlin, California as an Island, 132;

Phillips , Atlases, 523 and Maps, p.106, with justification for the date based on other maps;

Tooley, The Mapping of America, p.127, #65 with an estimated date of 1700.

PEUTINGER TABLE. Ortelius/Bertius. Rare Edition. 1619.
Tabula Itineraria Ex Illustri Peutingerorum Bibliotheca Quae Augustae Vindelicorum, Est Beneficio Marci Velseri Septemuiri Augustani In Lucem Edita .... 4 double-page sheets, each with two maps for a total of 8 maps. Each map approximately 7.7” h x 20.4” wide. This unusual map of the roads in the Roman Empire is named after Konrad Peutinger, an early owner of the manuscript map.

This is the earliest available edition. The plates were prepared under the supervision of Abraham Ortelius in 1598. Ortelius died in July 1598 before he could publish the sheets. However, Jan Moretus published the sheets separately in December of that year; those sheets are very rare. The present sheets were published in the 2nd part of his Theatrum Geographiae Veteris (1618), titled: Geographiae Oculus Historiarum Theatri Geographiae Veteris (Amsterdam, Jodocus Hondius, 1619). Reference Koeman, Ber 1. The sheets were also published posthumously in Ortelius' name in the final edition of his Perergon in 1624, (Koeman, Ort 46). Most of the maps found today were published in the 1624 edition. For more details, see below.

The Tabula Peutingeriana (Peutinger table) is an itinerarium (traveler’s guidebook) showing the imperial road network during the period of the Roman Empire. The original map, now lost, dates from the 4th century. It covered Europe, parts of Southern Asia to Sri Lanka, and North Africa. It was likely a papyrus roll approximately 22 feet long.

The oldest surviving copy of the Tabula Peutingeriana was made by a monk in Colmar (now a French city) circa 1265. It is a schematic scroll approximately 22 feet long with the land masses distorted, especially in the east-west direction. The map shows many Roman posts (settlements), the roads connecting them, rivers, mountains and seas. The distances between the settlements are given. The most important cities of the Roman Empire: Rome, Constantinople and Antioch, are represented with a special symbol.

In 1508, Konrad Peutinger (1465-1547) inherited the map from his friend Konrad Bickel or Celtes (1549-1508) who “found” it in a library years earlier. Since then it has been called Tabula Peutingeriana (Peutinger Table). The original rolled Peutinger map was subsequently cut into 12 pieces, and one piece has been lost. That part covered Spain, Portugal, and the western part of Britain. The remaining 11 pieces are now in the Vienna National Library.

The map had been left to Marcus Welser (1558-1614), a relative of Peutinger's wife. In 1591, Welser engraved and printed two sections of the map. His Fragmenta tabulae antiquae was published in Antwerp, Belgium by Jan (Johannes) Moretus (1543-1610). Ortelius thought this first Welser version was substandard so engaged Welser to prepare a manuscript version under Ortelius’ supervision, but Ortelius died (June 1598) before the maps could be published.

In December 1598, Moretus separately published the four sheets with two maps each. Those sheets have no text verso. Very rare and only a few sheets survive.

The present sheets were published from the same Ortelius plates for Petrus Bertius (1565-1629) in the 2nd part of his Theatrum Geographiae Veteris (1618), titled: Geographiae Oculus Historiarum Theatri Geographiae Veteris (Amsterdam, Jodocus Hondius, 1619). Reference Koeman, Ber 1. Shirley, 212. Illustrated in van den Broecke, maps 227, 228, 229, and 230. Text appears on the verso of the first sheet of two maps in this 1619 edition. Van den Broecke estimates that 300 copies were printed in the Theatrum, and he considers the Ortelius version to be the most reliable representation of the original.

In 1624 the Tabula Itineraria appeared in Ortelius’ Parergon, published in Antwerp by Balthasar Moretus (son of Jan Moretus) from the same plates. This is the last edition of the Parergon which was an atlas composed of maps of ancient geography (Koeman, Ort 46). A total of approximately 1025 copies were printed of the 1624 Latin edition and a 1641 Spanish edition. The 1619 and 1624 editions can be distinguished from each other by the text verso. The maps themselves are identical.

In 1652 Jan Jansson drew a version similar to that of Ortelius and published it in Amsterdam. The title cartouche is quite different from the earlier cartouche. Shirley, 393, stating: “They [the sheets] are easily distinguished from Ortelius’ rendering because in each of the eight sections the sea is plain instead of being stippled....” Shirley goes on to state: “Jansson’s Peutinger Table is relatively common as it was reprinted in a number of editions of Orbis Antiqui and Geographia Veteris ... in Part VI of Jansson’s Novus Atlas from 1658 onwards ... Atlas Major after 1662 ... several eighteenth-century editions with text by Peter Hondt and a re-issue by Bergier in 1728.”

References:

Koeman, Atlantes Neerlandici, Ber 1 for the present 1619 edition.

Koeman, Atlantes Neerlandici, Ort 46 for the 1624 “Parergon” edition.

Shirley, The Mapping of the World, 212 for the 1619 edition.

Shirley, The Mapping of the World, 393 for the Jansson 1652 edition.

Van den Broecke, Ortelius Atlas Maps, maps 227, 228, 229, and 230, illustrated.

For an entire book on this map, consult Richard Talbert’s Rome’s World: The Peutinger Map Revisited.

DOUBLE HEMISPHERE. Danckerts. c1660.
Nova Totius Terrarum Orbis Tabula Auctore D.D.

Above bottom neatline: Dancker Danckerts excudit.

The cartographer was Dancker Danckerts (1634-1666). This map appeared in Jacob Jacobsz (Lootsman), Zee Atlas, Amsterdam, 1666.

Below the hemispheres are representations of the four seasons with allegorical figures seated in chariots. Note the Great Wall of China and the uncharted Northwest part of North America. There are three versions of this map; the latter two are identical except for the cartographer indicated and the privilege statement.

“Nova Totius Terrarum Orbis Tabula Auctore Auctore Ioanne Bleau. ” Shirley 428. Joan Blaeu used this in his eleven-volume Atlas Maior in 1662. The image and surrounding scenes on our map are similar to the Blaeu version, but not identical.

“Nova Totius Terrarum Orbis Tabula Auctore D.D.” The listing for Shirley 477 indicates this world map was first believed to be by Danckerts and later determined to be the work of Dirck Davidszoon. (Shirley apparently did not see our version with Danckerts’ name above the bottom neatline.) The statement: "Met Privilegie voor 15 Yaren" appearing on the edition depicted on the Shirley 477 is not present on our edition. Shirley agreed to clarify his entry 477.

“Nova Totius Terrarum Orbis Tabula Auctore D.D.” (The present map.) Above the bottom neatline under the chariot at the right of center is the statement: “Dancker Danckerts excudit”. There is no privilege statement.

The Blaeu family often used maps prepared by other cartographers and modified them to reflect their style or size needed. It is possible a copy of this map was sold to Blaeu who made minor changes for his atlas. This map may precede the Blaeu edition.

“Dancker Danckerts (baptized 5 February 1634, Amsterdam - buried 8 December 1666, Amsterdam) was a well known Dutch engraver and publisher. Danckerts was the son of Cornelis Danckerts of Amsterdam and Anne Minne of Leiden. The Danckerts belonged to a large Amsterdam family of engravers, cartographers, print-sellers and publishers. Danckerts was known for both his etchings of paintings, maps and his publications. His works are widely collected and feature in numerous museum, library and archive collections around the world.” Source: Wikipedia.

Shirley, The Mapping of the World, 428 for the Blaeu version.

Shirley, 477 for the “D. D.” version.

DOUBLE HEMISPHERE. de Wit. 1688.
Novus Orbis Tabula in Lucem Edita, A.F. De Wit.

Below title: Amstelodami cum Privilegio Potentiss D. Dominerum Ordinum, Hollandiae et Westfrisiae. This privilege was granted to the cartographer A.F. de Wit in 1688.

Published by de Wit in Amsterdam, 1688. This second edition, which includes the privilege in the title, is rarer than the first edition.

Note the appearance of the American Bison in the upper left, probably seen east of the Mississippi River. California is shown as an island.

“De Wit's map is one of the most attractive of its time. The brilliant scenes in the corners combine images of the four seasons, the elements, and the signs of the zodiac in a well balanced and naturalistic way. The map appeared in atlases published by De Wit and also in composite atlases by Visscher, Jansson's heirs, and others. . . ." (Shirley, p. 469).

Shirley, The Mapping of the World, 499 for this version of the map.

Shirley, 451 for the original version, c.1670, illustrated on Pl. 323.