Subject: Western Africa
Period: 1750 (dated)
Publication: Hydrographique Francais
Color: Hand Color
Size:
34.8 x 21.5 inches
88.4 x 54.6 cm
Striking sea chart of the western coast of Africa from Sierra Leone to Cape Lopez. Six coastal views and a huge decorative title cartouche fill the interior. The chart is engraved with minute detail including anchorages, navigational hazards, soundings, forts, settlements, and watering places. Bellin, attached to the Depot de la Marine, became hydrographer to the King and a member of the Royal Society of London. He was commissioned to map all the known coasts of the world, resulting in the maps of this superb atlas.
References: Phillips (A) #587.
Condition: B+
An excellent impression on sturdy, watermarked paper with light soiling. There is paper tape along the edges of the sheet on verso. The bluish shadow along the centerfold is caused by our scanner and does not appear on the map itself.