1807 Cary Map of South America
Description: A fine example of John Cary’s spectacular 1807 two sheet map of South America. Covers the entirety of South America on two sheets. The upper sheet details the region from Cuba southwards as far as Lake Titicaca and Porto Bello, Brazil. Includes the Windward Isles or the Lesser Antilles. The bottom sheet details from Porto Seguro, Brazil, southward as far as Patagonia and Tierra del Fuego. Includes the Falkland Islands and South Georgia Island. Both sheets offer stupendous detail of the interior with liberal reference to numerous indigenous tribal groups – especially in the Amazon. Color coded according to region. Both sheets could be combined to form a single gigantic wall map of South America at the buyer’s discretion. All in all, one of the most interesting and attractive atlas maps South America to appear in first years of the 19th century. Prepared in 1807 by John Cary for issue in his magnificent 1808New Universal Atlas
Date: 1807 (dated)
Source: Cary, John, Cary's New Universal Atlas, containing distinct maps of all the principal states and kingdoms throughout the World. From the latest and best authorities extant. London: Printed for J. Cary, Engraver and Map-seller, No. 181, near Norfolk Street, Strand, 1808.
References: Rumsey 1657.062, 1657.061. Phillips, P. L., A List of Maps of America in the American Library of Congress, p. 805. Phillips, P. L., A catalogue of maps of Hispanic America, v. 2, p. 25. Phillips (Atlases) 714. The Map Collector, issue 43, p. 40-47 (Atlas). National Maritime Museum, v. 3, no. 311.
Cartographer: John Cary (1754 - 1835) was a London based cartographer active in the early part of the 19th century. Ronald Vere Tooley, the prominent English map historian, writes of Cary, "As an engraver he was elegant and exact with fine clear lettering and great delicacy of touch." Cary began his work as an engraver, cartographer, and globe maker in 1776 with his New and Correct English Atlas. This important atlas represented a new phase in cartography where accuracy and detail rose in prominence over the decorative embellishments of the 18th century. This change was indicative of the times when travel and commerce were expanding globally as never before. Cary's mastery of both engraving and cartography resulted in a series of seminal works that redefined mapmaking in the early 19th century. His stupendous Cary's New Universal Atlas, published in 1808, set the standard for all cartographers who followed. Cary reissued this seminal atlas in 1811, 1819, 1824, 1828, 1833, 1836 and 1844. Cary also did considerable work on the English Ordinance Survey prior to 1805. His cartographic work particularly inspired the Edinburgh school of cartography as represented by John Pinkerton and John Thomson. In America, Cary's work was used as the basis for Tanner's important New American Atlas. Cary's last published atlas appeared posthumously in 1844, however, by 1850 Cary's work was being carried on by his sons and other well-known cartographers including James Wyld, John Tallis & Company, and Crutchley. Click here for a list of rare maps by John Cary.
Size: Printed area measures 20.5 x 37 inches (52.07 x 93.98 centimeters)
Condition: Good condition. Minor discoloration and verso reinforcement on original folds. Minor creasing near centerfolds. Blank on verso. Minor offsetting.
Code: SouthAmerica-cary-1807 (to order by phone call: 646-320-8650)