1788 Map of Louisiana from D'Anville's Atlas

This très intéressant 49" x 36" map of French Louisiana from an atlas of North America by French cartographer to the king, Jean-Baptiste Bourguignon d'Anville, depicts the state of information known about the interior of this part of the North American continent in 1788. D'Anville was a remarkable cartographer, notable for his insistence on geographic accuracy and his insistence that areas of a map be left blank if information about them could not be confirmed with certainty. (This was a revolutionary departure from traditional mapping methods of the time, which generally filled in the details with conjecture, hearsay, monsters, or cartographic flourishes. It is therefore perhaps largely to d'Anville that generations of explorers were captivated by the blank spaces on published maps. 

This particular work is handsome - it is drawn with extreme skill and, as one would expect from d'Anville, not overly crammed with detail. This allows the grain and texture of the underlying paper to come through in a most pleasing manner, and at the same time, drawn the eye to the many interesting details that are included, such as Native American villages, white settlements, rivers and bays. 

The map is printed on Arches BFK Rives 100% Cotton Rag paper, handmade at the Blanchet Frères & Kléber paper mill in Rives, France on a traditional cylinder paper mould. The subtle pattern of the paper fibers is faintly visible with oblique lighting, and lends an appearance of richness and heft to the whole piece. 

* NOTE: This is a carefully crafted print of the highest quality, but it is not the original work.

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