DESCRIPTION: Original, 254 year-old antique working nautical chart of the east coast of South America including parts of Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana and Brazil. Coverage on this large French sea-chart includes a large area between the Orinoco (Grande Embouchure de l'Orenoque) and Amazon rivers that was once collectively known as "Guyane", a term derived from an indigenous word meaning "land of many waters". Named geographical features include Nouvelle Middelbourg, Fort de Nouvelle Zeeland, Cap de Nassau, Essequibo River, a settlement along the Essequibo labeled simply "le Bourg", Demerary River, Berbiche River, Port Nassau, Corentin River, Suriname River, Paramaribo and Nouvelle Amsterdam, Maurany River, Devils' Islands (Isles au Diable), Oyapoque River, Counany River, Cayenne, St. Paul Mission, Cap d'Orange, and Cap de Nord.
Numerous depth soundings, anchorages, hazards, and offshore details are noted. Some interior detail including rudimetary roads, missions, and guardposts are shown in French Guiana.
As denoted on the chart coverage area extends southward from Venezuela (Guyane Espagnole), Guyana and Suriname (Guyane Hollandoise) to French Guiana (Guyane Francoise) and Brazil (Guyane Portugaise). Inset at top right contains a elevation plan of the coast in the vicinity of Cayenne, the capital of French Guiana. Inset at bottom left contains profiles of headlands seen when approaching Cayenne and Cap d'Orange from the sea.
By Nicolas Bellin in 1760, working for France's Depot des Cartes et Plans de la Marine. At this later stage of his career Bellin's extensive experience as a cartographer is evidenced by the attribution within the large decorative cartouche: "Par le S, Bellin Ingenieur de la Marine, Censeur Royal de l'Acedemie de Marine, et de la Societe Royal de Londres."
With the circular anchor logo of the Depot de la Marine.The Depot de la Marine was established in 1720 under the French Ministry of the Navy to collect, preserve, and publish nautical charts, sailing directions, and maritime intelligence for the French naval service. Its purpose was both archival and practical: to centralize geographic knowledge gathered from voyages, surveys, and colonial administration, and to convert that information into standardized charts for navigation. Over the eighteenth century the Depot became the principal hydrographic authority of France, issuing engraved sea charts that incorporated data from naval expeditions, colonial outposts, and scientific voyages.
Following the French Revolution, the institution was reorganized and its chart production expanded, particularly during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries as global maritime competition intensified. The Depot de la Marine supervised official surveys, revised earlier charts, and maintained copperplates for continued reissue as coastal knowledge improved. In 1886 it was formally reorganized as the Service hydrographique de la Marine, the predecessor of today’s French hydrographic office. Charts bearing the Depot imprint remain important records of French naval activity, colonial expansion, and the technical development of European hydrography.
PUBLICATION DATE: 1760
GEOGRAPHIC AREA: French Guiana
BODY OF WATER: Atlantic Ocean
CONDITION: Good.
Wide margins and strong imprint on heavy paper with no major condition issues. Slight browning at centerfold with separation closed from the verso with tiny loss of image.
COLORING: None
ENGRAVER:
SIZE: 34
" x
22 "
ITEM PHYSICAL LOCATION: 67
PRICE: $475
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