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Willem Blaeu. "India quae Orientalis dicitur, et Insulae Adiacentes." Amsterdam: J. Blaeu, 1643-50. 16 x 19 3/4. Engraving. Excellent original color. Excellent condition. French text on verso.
A highly decorative map of southeast Asia by Willem (Guilielmus) Janszoon Blaeu (1571-1638), the progenitor of the famous Blaeu cartographic firm of Amsterdam. Blaeu studied astronomy and sciences with Tycho Brahe, and in 1599 established a globe and instrument making business which soon expanded to include cartographic and geographic publishing. This firm was to go on to become the largest and most important cartographic publishing firms in the world, run by his sons Cornelis (until his death in 1642) and Joan. The maps issued by the Blaeu firm are known for their fine craftsmanship and design, and have been called "the highest expression of Dutch cartographical art." This map is a premier example of the Blaeu output.
The map shows southeast Asia, extending as far north as Japan and west to include India. It was one of the best maps available at the time because Blaeu was the official cartographer for the Dutch East India Co. (Verenigde Oostindische Compagnie or VOC.), as is indicated by the dedication and coat-of-arms of Laurens Real, Governor-General of the VOC. With access to the information gathered by this company, Blaeu was able to produce a map of great detail showing this region which was the source of most of the wealth of the Dutch.
Also of great interest is one of the first printed depictions of any part of Australia, shown along the bottom and in the bottom right. In 1606, Willem Jansz made what was probably the first landing by a European on Australia, along the Cape York Peninsula (Carpentaria). While Blaeu would have had access to this discovery, the VOC wanted the information kept secret until the they had a chance to see what profit Australia could offer them, so Blaeu suppressed the information until he first showed those discoveries on this map when it was first issued in 1634. Besides the places named along the Cape York Peninsula, Blaeu also shows the results of the explorations, along the northwest coast, of Dirck Hartog ("Landt van d'Eendracht") in 1616 and Gerrit Frederikszoon de Wit ("G.F. de Wits landt") in 1628. $2,800
Frederick De Wit. "Tabula Indiae Orientalis." Amsterdam, 1662ff. 18 x 22 1/4. Engraving by Joannes Shuilier, 1662. Original hand color. Full margins. Very good condition. Koeman: Wit, 3 (17). Ref: Quirino, Philippine Cartography, p.84.
An updated map based on the Blaeu map of Southeast Asia (cf. above). Most of the atlases by Frederick DeWit (1630-1706) were composite in nature, so they are impossible to date precisely, though this map was engraved in 1662. The map shows from southeastern Persia to northwestern Australia. Focus is on India, Southeast Asia, and the East Indies with the Phillipines. The many islands are clearly depicted, with ports shown as the most important information. The Celebes Islands were then being developed for the spice trade which would lead to hostilities among the European powers. $1,250
Frederick DeWit. "Indiae Orientalis nec non Insularum Adiacentium Dova Descriptio." Amsterdam: F. de Wit, after 1689. 20 x 23 1/2. Engraving. Original hand color. Narrow margins at sides, as issued. Very good condition. Ref: Parry, The Cartography of the East Indian Islands, p.118f.
A colorful seventeenth century map of southeast Asia from Dutch cartographer, Frederick de Wit. De Wit followed in the footsteps of the earlier Dutch cartographic publishers Jansson and Blaeu, and like them, he issued maps known for their beautiful engraving and hand coloring. This map is a good example of his work, the rarest of the three maps he produced of southeastern Asia. De Wit's map focuses on the East Indies, for which this map provides a unique depiction. In particular its rendering of Sulawesi (Celebes) includes the Gulf of Tomini not shown on any other maps of the period, though he shows it as a strait rather than gulf. Another prominent feature on the map is the northern coast of Australia. Besides its interesting geography, the map includes a superb title cartouche, showing a native along with a Chinese and European trader examining a large pile of some of the trade riches of the area. $2,100
Two maps by Rigobert Bonne. From Atlas Moderne ou Collection de Cartes sur toutes les parties du Globe Terrestre. Paris: Jean Lattré & Delalain, [1771]-1775?. Engravings. Original hand color.
Rigobert Bonne (1727-1795) produced a large number of atlases and charts, and his maps also appeared in Atlas Moderne. Maps from this atlas used information compiled from 1762 until 1775.
This map was drawn, engraved and published by John Cary (fl. 1769-1836) in London for the 1801 edition of his New Universal Atlas. Amidst the turmoil of the Napoleonic wars, British Naval power was rising, and mapmaking as both art and science kept pace. Cary used existing maps and new surveys to provide his clients with the most up-to-date information on all parts of the world. Inaccuracies may be evident, but they reflect the knowledge in western Europe at the time they were made. This map shows the entire East Indies with excellent and geographically depicted detail. The original hand color adds a strong decorative appeal to this historic map. $450
Robert Wilkinson. "The Islands of the East Indies with the Channels between India, China & New Holland." From Robert Wilkinson's General Atlas of the World, Quarters, Empires, Kingdoms, States etc. with Appropriate Tables. (London, 1806) 8 5/8 x 11. Engraving. Original hand color. Very good condition.
A typically detailed and neat British map of the Africa. The map is noted as being reduced from "the Four Sheet Map" by Wilkinson issued about the same time. Detail includes towns, rivers, and some other topography. Political divisions are shown with contrasting colors. Some of these are accurate, but some are quite speculative. This was a period of considerable British interest in the "Dark Continent" and this map is a terrific snapshot of the European understanding of Africa just after the turn of the century. With the lovely hand color and precise engraving, the map is decorative as well as historically interesting. $185
J.W. T. Assheton. “East India Islands.” From London Encyclopedia. London, 1826. 8 x 10 1/4. Engraving. Uncolored. Very good condition.
A clear map of the East Indies from an early nineteenth century encyclopedia. Interior detail is sparce, but islands, coastal settlements and some rivers are noted. $55
John Dower. "Birman Empire & Countires South East Of The Ganges." From A New General Atlas of the World. London: H. Teesdale & Co., 1842. 16 3/8 x 13 3/8. Engraving. Original hand color. Very good condition.
This precise and detailed map is typical of the high quality cartographic output of British mapmakers in the first half of the nineteenth century. Dower had access to excellent information about the extended British empire (which he always indicated with red on his maps) as well as regions of British interest, such as in Southeast Asia. This excellent and fascinating map shows from the "Birman Empire" to Singapore, with each nation indicated with a constrasting pastel shade. Lovely and historically of great interest. $450
"Colton's East Indies." New York: G.W. & C.B. Colton & Co., 1866. 12 5/8 x 15 5/8. Lithograph. Original outline color. One spot off the coast of Sumatra; a few other scattered light smudges. Else very good condition.
In the mid-nineteenth century, the center of map publishing in America moved from Philadelphia to New York. The J.H. Colton publishing firm played a large role in that shift, producing crisp, clean maps like this one of the East Indies. $95
A.J. Johnson. “Johnson’s Australia and East Indies.” New York: A.J. Johnson, 1867. 22 3/4 x 17. Lithograph. Original hand color. Light time toning. Very good condition.
A handsome map of the south-west Pacific from A. J. Johnson’s mid-nineteenth century atlas of the world. Johnson, who published out of New York City, was one of the leading cartographic publishers in the second half of the century, producing popular atlases and geographies. $85
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