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1818 Pinkerton Map of Prussia and its Dominions

PrussianDominions-pinkerton-1818
$100.00
Prussian Dominions. - Main View
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1818 Pinkerton Map of Prussia and its Dominions

PrussianDominions-pinkerton-1818


Title


Prussian Dominions.
  1818 (undated)     21 x 28 in (53.34 x 71.12 cm)     1 : 1440000

Description


A scarce, beautiful, and exceptionally interesting example of John Pinkerton's stunning 1810 map of Prussia. The Map covers from the Baltic Sea to Upper Silesia and from Lower Saxony to Russia, including parts of modern day Poland.

In 1815 Prussia emerged from the Napoleonic Wars and the Congress of Vienna as the dominant Germanic power. Its new borders included much of the Kingdom of Saxony, Rhineland, and Poland. In subsequent years Prussia would take a leading role in governing the German Confederation. The German Confederation, created in 1814, acted as a buffer zone between Austria and Prussia, its two largest and most powerful member states. Nonetheless the rivalry between the two powerful states would increase until the break out of the Austro-Prussian War in 1866. Prussia would win the Austro-Prussian War, which would ultimately lead to the collapse of the German Confederation. A few years later, in 1871, most of the former Confederation states were folded into the newly proclaimed German Empire.

Drawn by L. Herbert and engraved by Samuel Neele under the direction of John Pinkerton. This map comes from the scarce American edition of Pinkerton's Modern Atlas, published by Thomas Dobson & Co. of Philadelphia in 1818.

CartographerS


John Pinkerton (February 17, 1758 - March 10, 1826) was an Scottish writer, historian, and cartographer. Pinkerton was born in Edinburgh, Scotland. He was a studious youth with a passion for the classics. As a young man, he studied at Edinburgh University before apprenticing as a lawyer. Around this time, he began writing, with his first book, Elegy on Craigmillar Castle published in 1776. Pinkerton moved to London in 1781 to pursue his writing career in earnest. He successfully published several works of literature, poetry, and history. Pinkerton proved passionate in his literary and historical writings, but his correspondence with other cartographers has been labeled as aggressive, even insane. In addition to his work as a writer and historian, Pinkerton was one of the leading masters of the Edinburgh school of cartography which flourished from roughly 1800 to 1830. Pinkerton and his contemporaries (Thomson and Cary) redefined European cartography by abandoning typical 18th century decorative elements such as elaborate title cartouches and fantastical beasts in favor of detail and accuracy. Pinkerton's principle work is Pinkerton's Modern Atlas published from 1808 through 1815 with a special American reissue by Dobson and Co. in 1818. Pinkerton relocated to Paris in 1818, where he managed his publishing business until his death in 1826. More by this mapmaker...


Thomas Dobson (1751 - 1823) was an American publisher active in Philadelphia during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Dobson was born in Edinburgh, Scotland in 1751 and emigrated to Philadelphia c. 1780. In Philadelphia, he established a successful printing business by republishing edited and updated versions of important British reference materials in matching quality but at a much lower price point. He is best known for publishing the first American edition of the Encyclopedia Britannica. He also published America's first Hebrew Bible. Cartographically Dobson's most notable work is 1818 republication of Pinkerton's fantastic Modern Atlas. Learn More...

Source


Pinkerton, J., A Modern Atlas, from the Lates and Best Authorities, Exhibiting the Various Divisions of the World with its chief Empires, Kingdoms, and States; in Sixty Maps, carefully reduced from the Larges and Most Authentic Sources, (Philadelphia) 1818, Thomas Dobson Edition.    

Condition


Good. Minor wear and verso reinforcement along original centerfold. Verso repair along top and bottom margins. Some foxing at places, especially over lower quadrants.

References


Rumsey 0732.018 (1810 edition).