1816 Thomson Map of the Northern Hemisphere

NorthernHemisphere-thomson-1816
$500.00
Northern Hemisphere Projected on the Plane of the Horizon of London. - Main View
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1816 Thomson Map of the Northern Hemisphere

NorthernHemisphere-thomson-1816

Unusal polar projection.
$500.00

Title


Northern Hemisphere Projected on the Plane of the Horizon of London.
  1816 (dated)     25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.34 cm)     1 : 41000000

Description


A lovely 1816 offset polar projection map of the Northern Hemisphere that appeared in Edinburgh cartographer John Thomson's New General Atlas.
A Closer Look
Focusing on the Northern Hemisphere but extending southwards past the Tropic of Capricorn, coverage includes all of North America, Europe, and Asia as well as much of Africa and South America. The perspective adopted is distinctive, being centered on 'the horizon of the plane of London' rather than the North Pole or the Equator. Impressive detail encompasses both political and geographic features. International borders are not illustrated, while paths trace divisions between geographic areas, the course of caravan routes through the Sahara Desert, the voyages of Captain James Cook, and the supposed course of unexplored rivers. In Africa, the mythical Mountains of Kong extend eastward to join with the Mountains of the Moon - the semi-apocryphal source of the Nile. The geography exhibits a general lack of information regarding the Arctic and connects Greenland with the mainland of North America, seemingly leaving open the possibility of a Northeast, though not a Northwest, Passage.
Publication History and Census
This map was prepared by George Buchanan and engraved by John and George Menzies in 1816 for inclusion in John Thomson's New General Atlas, which went through multiple printings in Edinburgh, London, and Dublin between 1815 and 1817. Examples of the map display different pagination (or none at all, as here) and other details depending on the printing.

CartographerS


John Thomson (1777 - c. 1841) was a Scottish cartographer, publisher, and bookbinder active in Edinburgh during the early part of the 19th century. Thomson apprenticed under Edinburgh bookbinder Robert Alison. After his apprenticeship, he briefly went into business with Abraham Thomson. Later, the two parted ways, John Thomson segueing into maps and Abraham Thomson taking over the bookbinding portion of the business. Thomson is generally one of the leading publishers in the Edinburgh school of cartography, which flourished from roughly 1800 to 1830. Thomson and his contemporaries (Pinkerton and Cary) redefined European cartography by abandoning typical 18th-century decorative elements such as elaborate title cartouches and fantastic beasts in favor of detail and accuracy. Thomson's principle works include Thomson's New General Atlas, published from 1814 to 1821, the New Classical and Historical Atlas of 1829, and his 1830 Atlas of Scotland. The Atlas of Scotland, a work of groundbreaking detail and dedication, would eventually bankrupt the Thomson firm in 1830, at which time their plates were sequestered by the court. The firm partially recovered in the subsequent year, allowing Thomson to reclaim his printing plates in 1831, but filed again for bankruptcy in 1835, at which time most of his printing plates were sold to A. K. Johnston and Company. There is some suggestion that he continued to work as a bookbinder until 1841. Today, Thomson maps are becoming increasingly rare as they are highly admired for their impressive size, vivid hand coloration, and superb detail. More by this mapmaker...


John Menzies (October 27, 1772 - October 16, 1857) was a Scottish engraver active in Edinburgh during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Menzies mastered engraving as an apprentice to James Rymer. In 1811, he partnered with his younger brother, George Menzies, to found the engraving firm of J. and G. Menzies, which was active until about 1831. Later his son, also named John, joined the firm and they engraved jointly under the imprint of J. Menzies and Son. At its height, the Menzies firm employed three men and three apprentices. Menzies engraved maps for Thomas Brown and John Thomson, among others. After his death, his son, John Menzies II (1819 – 1891), continued the family business until about 1891. Learn More...

Source


Thomson, J., A New General Atlas, (Edinburgh) 1817.     Thomson's New General Atlas was first published in 1817 and continued to be published until about 1821. This is the first of Thomson's major cartographic works and the atlas for which is most celebrated. The New General Atlas follows in the Edinburgh School, which eschews excessive decoration in favor of a more minimalistic fact-based cartographic vision, as established by John Pinkerton, Laurie and Whittle, John Cary, and others in the previous decades. The maps are notable for their massive scale, heavy stock, elegant color work, and easy-to-read typefaces. Although the atlas stopped being published after 1821, Thomson continued to offer 'supplementary' maps that could be tipped into the atlas as late as 1830, when he declared bankruptcy. The maps in the Thomson Atlas were engraved by Thomas Clerk, William Dassauville, Nathaniel Rogers Hewitt, James Kirkwood, Robert Kirkwood, John Menzies, George Menzies, Edward Mitchell, John Moffatt, Samuel John Neele, Robert Scott, and James Wyld.

Condition


Good. Offsetting. Light soiling.

References


Rumsey 1007.007.