1790 Mondhare et Jean City Plan or Map of Paris, France

A stunning 1790 Louis-Joseph Mondhare and Pierre Jean Revolutionary-Era city map of Paris, France - this is the only map the Assemblée Nationale recognized to delineate its newly created sections within Paris. The map was printed by order of the Assemblée Nationale a year the Storming of the Bastille and the outset of the French Revolution (1789 - 1799).

The Sections

Capturing a city in the throes of Revolution, the 48 new sections are numbered and shaded. The sections were established by the National Assembly as divisions for elections to the Estates-General. A civil committee, a revolutionary committee, and an armed force governed each and acted as intermediaries between the populace and the Paris Commune. The sections played an important role in the August 1792 election that directly led to the end of the monarchy in France. An index of the 48 sections appears in the upper right.

A Closer Look

The map focuses on what today would be considered central Paris, stretching from the Place de l'Étoile to the Place du Trône (today's Place de la Nation). Apart from the sections, Paris's streets, monuments, and other buildings are illustrated. Among these are the Palais des Tuileries, the Louvre, the Place Vendome, the Madeleine, the Bastille, and Notre Dame. An alphabetic street index occupies both the left and right sides. Indexes of libraries, churches, hospitals, schools, parishes, and squares are included along the bottom border.

Publication History and Census

This map was created and published by Louis-Joseph Mondhare and Pierre Jean in 1790. We note 7 examples cataloged in OCLC which are part of the collections at Princeton University, Harvard University, Cornell University, the University of Michigan, the University of Oregon, the Bibliothèque nationale de France, and the Universitätsbibliothek Kassel in Kassel, Germany.