Antique Map of the Harbour of Samganoodha by Cook, c.1781

Antique map French Polynesia titled 'Schets van de Havenen aan de Noord Zijde van Eimeo'. Plan of the harbour of Taloo in the Island of Moorea, one of the Society Islands, French Polynesia. Originates from 'Reize rondom de Waereld door James Cook...

Antique map titled 'Sketch of Tongataboo Harbour (..)'. Antique map of the harbour of Tongatabu, one of the Tonga Islands. Originates from an edition of Cook's Voyages. Artists an...

Antique map titled 'Sketch of the Harbours on the North Side of Eimeo (..)'. Plan of the harbour of Taloo in the Island of Moorea, one of the Society Islands, French Polynesia. Origi...

Antique map Kerguelen titled 'Sketch of Port Palliser on Kerguelen's Land (..)'. Antique map of Port Pallisers & Kersmis, Kerguelen or Desolation Islands. Originates from an edition ...

This hand-colored sea chart of the area around Dartmouth, England is from "Great Britain's Coasting Pilot. Being a New and Exact Survey of the Sea-Coast of England", first published ...

Jacques Bellin's copper-plate map entitled "Partie de la Coste de Guinee Dupuis la Riviere de Sierra Leona Jusquau Cap das Palmas", depicting the coast of Guinea and Sierra Leone in ...

This is an 18th century hand-colored map of the western portions of North America entitled "Carte de la Californie et des Pays Nord-Ouest separés de l'Asie par le détroit d'Anian, ex...

This is a 17th century hand-colored map entitled "Insula Gaditana Isla de Cadiz" from Johannes (Joan) Blaeu's Atlas Maior, published in Amsterdam in 1662. The map provides an excellent plan of Cadiz Island on the southwest coast of Spain, with its harbor, fortifications, agricultural fields and several surrounding salt processing areas. Numerous sailing ships of various sizes are included in and around the harbor and bay, including five large sailing ships, as well as twenty-four smaller ships. There is a small compass rose overlying the bay. The bridge to the mainland from the island is shown on the right. There is an extremely ornate and colorful title cartouche in the lower left, with its mythological figures reminiscent of Raphael’s Galatea fresco at the Villa Farnesina in Rome. The vibrant colors are vividly preserved. The master colorist tried to emulate a painting by using various tones to create a three-dimensional effect.
 Blaeu's name is present in the plate in the lower right. Blaeu stated in his description of Cadiz: “The main wealth of the islanders consists of salt, which they harvest, and
 the tuna fisheries.” 
 This 17th century hand-colored map is framed in an ornate, partially textured bronze-colored wood frame and glazed with UV protected conservation glass. There is a vertical center fold, as issued. There is a faint crease in the lower right and faint color offset on the left from the right side of the map, resulting from having been in an atlas for hundreds of years. Small foci of paint are present in the upper portion of the left margin and in the left corner margin. The map is otherwise in very good condition. Due in large part to their powerful trade empire, the Dutch became known for cartography in the seventeenth century. This period is considered the Golden Age of Dutch cartography. Their publishing houses produced the highest quality work in Europe, particularly those maps and charts of foreign lands, and Dutch map-making set the bar for cartographic accuracy and artistry into the early-eighteenth century. Some of the most well-known cartographers worked in Amsterdam during this period. Perhaps the most famous of these was the Blaeu family. Willem Janszoon Blaeu, set up shop in Amsterdam. His son, Johannes (Joan), succeeded him upon his death in 1638, continuing in his father’s position as Hydrographer to the Dutch East India Company and selling maps to the public. The Blaeu map presses, located near Amsterdam’s Dam Square...