A Fascinating Collection of Antique Maps
From Jonathan Potter
Antique Maps from Jonathan Potter.
By Michael Stillman
We recently received a new catalogue of maps from Jonathan Potter Limited, called, logically enough, "A selection of Antique Maps from Jonathan Potter." While the catalogue may be new, the maps certainly are not. This is a collection of maps printed from the 16th through the 19th centuries, and there are few places on earth that are not covered. Potter is a London map and atlas specialist, so naturally there is a concentration of English works. However, there are many maps printed on the adjacent continent, and for Americana collectors, there is much of interest. After all, there were maps depicting at least parts of America being printed in the Old World well over a century before the Bay Psalm Book rolled off the first press in America. Where better to look for the earliest maps of America than in the former seat of our government, London?
As our audience tends to be concentrated in North America, we will focus more on the maps offered of this area. However, those with interests in maps of other areas will no less want to see this catalogue. There are also collections covering Europe, Asia, Africa, the Pacific, the world, the heavens (celestial), and, of course, many covering Britain, including very specific areas such as individual counties and cities. All prices in the catalogue are in British pounds, but for the benefit of American readers, we will include approximate U.S. dollar amounts.
J. Speed's A New And Accurat Map of the World is no longer new and was never "accurat." What it comes from, however, is the first atlas produced in England. It was also the first map to depict California as an island, an "improvement" on earlier maps not exactly in keeping with its claim to accuracy. Still, Speed can be forgiven the mistake considering the map was originally produced in 1627. Item 8. Priced at £10,500 (approximately US $19,223).
Item 365 is a separately issued map of the Americas engraved in 1614 for Pieter Van Den Keer. This is a later state of Americae Nova Descriptio... printed in Amsterdam. The map takes notice of some the then recent discoveries of Henry Hudson. And, it kept California connected to the rest of the continent. However, much of North America, particularly the west, bears little resemblance to what we know today. £7,800 ($14,295).
Item 374 is a 17th century Visscher map from Amsterdam covering the eastern seaboard of North America, from New France, now known as Canada, down through New England and on to Virginia. It also has an inset of one of the earliest views of New Amsterdam, which looks very little like today's New York, though it resided on the same small island at the mouth of the Hudson. While many of the names have changed, and the inland areas don’t look quite right (most of the Great Lakes have disappeared), the coastline itself is immediately recognizable. £6,000 ($11,003).
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A Fascinating Collection of Antique Maps
From Jonathan Potter
Bowles' map shows North America at the turn of the 19th century.
Item 87 is a strange looking map. It’s a map that includes the British isles and parts of northern Europe by scientist and ornithologist George Edwards. Shown on the 1746 map, which was included with his book Natural History of Uncommon Birds, are drawings of a Lesser Humming Bird, the bill of an Egyptian Ibis, and two ugly stag beetles from Borneo, if not as big as all England, then at least as large as Scotland on this map. £300 ($550).
Item 99 is a 1695 London atlas, Camden’s Britannia, Newly Translated Into English…
Maps within the atlas include England at various times along with many individual county maps. There are also portraits of old coins, and a drawing of Stonehenge and other antiquities. What I don’t understand is the “translated into English” part. In what language would you write an atlas of Britannia? French? £3,750 ($6,892).
In 1805, during the time of Napoleon, England had one of its most significant naval victories. The French ruler had dreams of conquering England, along with just about everyplace else, but the British were the still the greatest naval power. Napoleon’s dreams of reversing this balance would come to an end in this one-sided Battle of Trafalgar as Britain’s forces, under Lord Nelson, would demolish the French. Britain would rule the seas for another century after this victory. Item 270 is a pair of charts from 1810 illustrating the battle. The first shows Nelson’s ship, the H.M.S. Victory, breeching the French line, which made it difficult for the French to attack the British. The second plate shows the conclusion of the battle. Item 270. £950 ($1,747).
Item 402 is Bowles’s New One Sheet Map of North America… This 1796 London map covers the entire continent, from Central America to the Arctic, with the exception of Alaska. One look at this map (see image this page) will reveal why the Lewis and Clark expedition a few years later would generate such great interest. Most of the continent, even some of the far northern areas of Canada, contains a fair amount of detail, but the Northwest was still essentially a blank slate at the time. £850 ($1,564).
Item 410 is another London map of North America, this time primarily the United States, and the date is 1861, the beginning of the Civil War. The map was a supplement to the June issue of the Illustrated London News, and the states have been shaded to distinguish the Union states from the Confederacy. Meanwhile, the west is divided into territories by boundaries no longer recognized today. £460 ($846).
For those who do not have access to this very interesting catalogue we have some good news. It is available online. Simply go to the following link to see both descriptions and images of the 452 maps and atlases in the catalogue: www.jpmaps.co.uk/catalogue.htm Jonathan Potter Antique Maps may also be reached by phone at 44 (0) 20 7491 3520.
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