1757 Vaugondy Map of South America

An Elegant Classic of French Cartographic Art.

This is a beautiful 1757 map of South America by Gilles Robert de Vaugondy. It covers the continent from Panama to Tierra del Fuego and Cape Horn. Excellent detail appears throughout, depicting mountains, rivers, forests, swamps, cities, and a host of additional topographic features.

Differences from the First State

This second state is most obviously changed from the first state in its cartouche, but it also includes place names not present on the earlier state. Some appear to be a matter of oversight, as they appear on earlier maps: St. George dos Ilhos, for example, and the Isla de Martim Vaz which is shown on the first state of the map but not named, as it is here. C. des 3 Pointes appears here near Trinidad, where it is lacking on the first state. The Isla de Fernand de Noronha appears here and is named, whereas the first state of the map does not include the island at all. In the Pacific Ocean, the equatorial archipelago unnamed on the first state of the map is here collectively named Isles Galapes, although the specific islands are not.

L. de los Xarayes

Vaugondy identifies the mythical Laguna de Xarayes, supposed gateway to paradise or El Dorado, as the northern terminus of the Paraguay River. The Xarayes, a corruption of 'Xaraies' meaning 'Masters of the River', were an indigenous people occupying what are today parts of Brazil's Matte Grosso and the Pantanal. When Spanish and Portuguese explorers first navigated up the Paraguay River, as always in search of El Dorado, they encountered the vast Pantanal flood plain at the height of its annual inundation. Understandably misinterpreting the flood plain as a gigantic inland sea, they named it after the local inhabitants, the Xaraies. The Laguna de los Xarayes almost immediately began to appear on early maps of the region and, at the same time, almost immediately took on a legendary aspect. Later missionaries and chroniclers, particularly Díaz de Guzmán, imagined an island in this lake and curiously identified it as an 'Island of Paradise'.

Easter Island?

To the west of Chile, in the South Pacific Ocean, Vaugondy identifies the 'Land discovered by Davis', roughly where Easter Island is today. Terre de Davis or Davis' Land was supposedly discovered in 1688 by an English navigator of the same name. Many historians argue whether or not Davis Land was actually Easter Island, but it does seem likely.

A Beautifully Crafted Cartouche

The cartouche of the first state of this map, as classified by Pedley, appears to have been unfinished. The features at the top of the cartouche - the parrot, the Indian princess, the cocoa pod, and the chili pepper - were all present. The lower half of the cartouche's frame was much more Spartan, with a single and not-very-impressive alligator at the lower left of the privilege and date. The cartouche engraver's imprint - 'Gobin fecit' - lurks apologetically below. The present example is the second state of the map, and here the cartouche is artistically far superior. The upper elements are - from the Indian's ankle on up - unchanged, but below that the frame of the cartouche is much more substantial. A sculpted base, overgrown with flowers and vines, with a peck of peppers piled at the lower left and a more accomplished alligator arranged attractively at the bottom center of the cartouche. Gobin's imprint does not appear, but no other has been added to replace it.

Publication History and Census

This map was drawn by Robert de Vaugondy and first published in 1750. This example, though containing the same date, was published in the 1757 issue of Vaugondy's Atlas Universel. Some thirteen examples of various states of the map are separately catalogued in OCLC.

Cartographers

Robert de Vaugondy (fl. c. 1716 - 1786) was a French publishing firm run by Gilles (1688 - 1766) and Didier (c. 1723 - 1786) Robert de Vaugondy. They were map publishers, engravers, and cartographers active in Paris during the mid-18th century. Gilles was the nephew of Pierre Moulard Sanson, and was thus the inheritor of Nicolas Sanson (1600 - 1667), whose stock supplied much of their initial material and whose legacy supplied much of their initial reputation. Graduating from Sanson's maps, Gilles, and more particularly Didier, began to produce their own substantial corpus. The Vaugondys were well-respected for the detail and accuracy of their maps, for which they capitalized on the resources of 18th-century Paris to compile the most accurate and fantasy-free maps possible. The Vaugondys compiled each map based on their own geographic knowledge, scholarly research, journals of contemporary explorers and missionaries, and direct astronomical observation. Moreover, unlike many cartographers of this period, they took pains to reference their sources. Nevertheless, even in 18th-century Paris, geographical knowledge was limited - especially regarding those unexplored portions of the world, including the poles, the Pacific Northwest of America, and the interiors of Africa, Australia, and South America. This gap in knowledge let to divergent geographical approaches, epitomized by the Buache-Vaugondy debates at the French Academie des Sciences - one of the key pivotal moments in the history of modern cartography. Buache, in his Exposé, argued for a Theoretical Geography, which postulated that a systematic and scientific approach could accurately fill in the map in advance of actual exploration. Vaugondy's scathing critique of the Exposé, presented as the Considerations, argued for empirical restraint in cartography, suggesting that unexplored areas should simply be left blank and that mapping itself should rely on documentable current discovery. While Bucahe, with more political acumen and connections, initially came out ahead in the debates, the subsequent decades saw voyages of discovery by Captains James Cook, Jean Francois de Galaup de La Perouse, and George Vancouver disprove most of his map. Nonetheless, by that time, Vaugondy, advanced in age, did not live long enough to see his approach become ascendant. Didier died more celebrated than solvent, and his maps were acquired by Jean-Baptiste Fortin, who in 1787 sold them to Charles-François Delamarche (1740 - 1817). Delamarche, more businessman than cartographer, prospered from the Vaugondy maps, but defrauded Vaugondy's widow, Marie Louise Rosalie Dangy, of her rightful inheritance and may even have killed her.   Further Details...

(?) Gobin (fl. 1743 - 1753) was a French engraver, specializing in decorative cartouches. His output appears to have overwhelmingly in the service of the maps of Robert de Vaugondy. Pedley speculates that Gobin dies in 1753, as no work appears with his signature after that date.   Further Details...

Source

Robert de Vaugondy, G., Atlas Universel, (Paris) 1757.    

The Atlas Universel was the crowning glory of the Robert de Vaugondy firm's atlas production. The atlas was revolutionary on many levels and exemplified the Vaugondy credo commode, complet, univorme, et suive (convenient, complete, uniform, and easy to use). The atlas thus consisted of a wide corpus of maps, both modern and historical, was of moderate height and width, and featured maps of uniform style and structure. They partnered with Antoine Boudet, a shrewd businessman and publisher with whom they had worked previously, to produce the 1752 first edition. To minimize his fiscal risk, Boudet sold the atlas first by subscription using a large prospectus, receiving in the process over 1100 pre-orders. The first edition appeared in 1752 and contained beautifully produced maps with elaborate freshly designed allegorical cartouche work, generally by Pierre-Edme Babel, Pierre Philippe Choffard, and Charles Nicholas Cochin. Most of the maps were engraved by the Delahaye firm, the payment for whose services ultimately led to legal disputes. Despite proving a popular work of astounding quality, the Atlas Universal received harsh criticism from fellow cartographers, particularly Philipppe Buache. Ever at odds with the Vaugondys, Buache's critical perspective may have been influenced more by political maneuvering than academic affront. The atlas was issued in multiple editions between 1752 and 1788. Later editions, issued after 1786, were taken over by Charles Delamarche, who inherited the Robert de Vaugondy firm and assumed Boudet's publication rights.

Condition

Excellent. Very minor waterstain in upper margin, just faintly entering image. Original outline color. Generous margins and no mends.

References

OCLC 431561937. Rumsey 3353.102. Pedley, Mary Sponberg Belle et Utile: The Work of the Robert de Vaugondy Family of Mapmakers, 487, state 2.