1827 Amer. Mer. No. 18. Partie Du Bresil.
By: Philippe Marie Vandermaelen
Date: 1827 (Published) Brussels
Dimensions: 18.5 x 22.4 inches (47 x 57 cm)
This map of Brazil is from Vandermaelen’s atlas of South America. The territory it covers constitutes a relatively small area of Brazil, and is rendered in some detail. Major and minor river systems are well depicted, and the already large city of Rio de Janeiro is featured. Many place names dot the map both on the coast and inland. Mountain ranges are shown pictorially.
The maps’ most distinguishing qualities include use of the same scale and projection. The consistent nature of these elements allowed the maps to be joined together to form a huge globe measuring over 25 feet in diameter.
About Philippe Marie Vandermaelen
Born to a wealthy family, Vandermaelen was more interested in cartography than in his father’s business, and was obsessed with maps from a young age. He taught himself mathematics, astronomy, and mapmaking and even plotted the battles of the Napoleonic wars on his own. He made a mark for himself by publishing the first lithographic atlas, his Atlas Universel, which was considered by many to have been one of the most remarkable world atlases ever made. The Atlas was published once, with only 810 copies of it sold. In 1836 for his services to geography and the intellectual community of Belgium, Vandermaelen was knighted.
Condition: This lithograph map with outline hand coloring is in C+ condition. Light foxing and minor damp staining in places, visible primarily when map held up to light. Some paper loss at the top of the is apparent, but confined to the margin. A few separations within the image of the map have been repaired with archival material on the verso.
Inventory #11731
1200 W. 35th Street #425 Chicago, IL 60609 | P: (312) 496 - 3622