1693 Pardies Set of 6 Celestial Maps: Stars, Constellations, Comets

This is a stunning example of Ignace-Gaston Pardies' innovative 1693 celestial maps on 6-part gnomonic projection - here in fine, uncolored loose sheets with an exceptionally strong, crisp impression. Pardies' charts were both revolutionary and influential, emerging as eager scholars and private researchers, aided by ever more sophisticated telescopes, advanced knowledge of astronomy by leaps and bounds.

A Closer Look

Pardies followed earlier Jesuit celestial mapmakers Grienberger (1612) and Grassi (1619) in using a gnomonic projection, which visualized the universe as a 6-sided cube. In fact, if the maps were cut out, they could be joined as such. The charts break from most earlier celestial maps in that they have a geocentric perspective rather than a god-eye view; that is to say, they look at the stars as observed from Earth rather than from a point outside the celestial sphere. Such a projection is helpful for observers of the night sky, as it allows for accurate measurement by straight lines between any point on the map.

The 1674 first edition included some 1,481 stars drawn from the observations of Johannes Hevelius, Giovanni Battista Riccioli, Johann Bayer, and Johannes Kepler, with the present second edition updated to about 1500 stars.

According to researcher Deborah J. Warner,

The basic style of Pardies' maps was derived from the large globes issued by Blaeu in 1616 - 1622 … The published reports of their observations indicate that Jesuit astronomers throughout the world relied heavily on Pardies' maps for obtaining the coordinates of both old stars and newly discovered ones. Furthermore, while using the maps they improved them by adding new stars and correcting the positions of old ones; many of these revisions were incorporated into the second edition [c. 1690] … Pardies' maps served as a model for the gnomonic maps by Jonas Moore, Doppelmayer, Kordenbusch, and, in the 19th century, the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge, and for Grimaldi's maps of the Chinese constellations (Warner, pages 196-8).

The Constellations

The maps include most of the constellations that we are familiar with today, including the 12 constellations of the Zodiac, as well as other constellations that have since fallen out of fashion. Most are derived from the German astronomer Johann Bayer's 1603 Uranometria. However, where Bayer treats each constellation somewhat independently, Pardies presents them within the greater context of the global night sky. This innovation was not accomplished without difficulty, as it necessitated filling limited space with a wealth of content - a work brilliantly accomplished by the master engraver Guillaume Vallet. In the words of an exhibition catalog issued by the Linda Hall Library of Science, Engineering and Technology in Kansas City, Missouri,

Pardies' star atlas is stylistically one of the most attractive ever published. Pardies took his constellation figures primarily from Bayer's Uranometria, but since each chart covers a large section of the sky, these figures had to be carefully integrated, which was not an easy task. Pardies' engraver accomplished this task with great success.... The plate [which] shows Hercules, Ophiuchus, Scorpius, Sagittarius, Aquila, and Lyra...is one of the most stunning compositions in the history of celestial cartography.

Comets

Among other innovations is the inclusion of multiple comet paths with observation dates, including the 1706 path of Halley's Comet. Pardies had a particular interest in comets, having published his 1665 work on the subject, Dissertatio de Motu et Natura Cometarum. For these maps, he draws on his own study, the observations of Tycho Brahe and Edmond Halley, and the research contained in Stanislaw Lubieniecki's Theatrum Cometicum.

Side Panels

Each sheet features explanatory side panels in both Latin and French. The first sheet also contains a Latin dedication to Pardies' patron, Johann Friedrich (1625 - 1679), Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg-Kalenburg-Grubenhagen. The dedication is dated 1673, thus composed shortly before Pardies' sudden sickness and death. Subsequent text is mirrored in both languages and includes instructions on using the maps, text on the observation of comets, and an index of constellations. The side panels were typeset by Sebastien Mabre-Cramoisy.

Publication History and Census

Pardies died a year before the first edition was published. The project was taken up by Jesuit scientist and missionary Jean de Fontenay (1643 - 1710), who issued the first edition in 1674. The map plates for this edition were engraved by Guillaume Vallet. This second edition followed in 1693, with considerable updates engraved by Vallet's former apprentice, Gaspard Duchange - whose imprint replaced that of Vallet. A third edition, with few updates, was issued in 1700. All examples are rare. We see a single sheet that has appeared at auction in recent years, fetching some 5,500 USD. Full sets, as here, are even more scarce.