Les Vrays Indes dits Grands rabic r Indes Orientales

1705

Later hand-coloured copper engraving on paper

Print Size: 12.25 x 9 in (31.2 x 22.5 cm)
With Mount: 15.5 x 19 in (39 x 48.2 cm)

Full Title: Les vrays Indes dits Grand rabic r Indes Orientales [cartographic material] / par N. de Fer Geographe de Sa Majeste Catoliques [sic] et de Monseigneur le Dauphin; C. Inselin Sculpr

Striking map on India, Thailand, the Malay Peninsular and the south coast of China up to Macau engraved by C Inselin, showing excellent detail throughout. From De Fer’s L’Atlas Curieux ou le Monde Represente ans des Cartes Generales et Particulieres du Ciel et de la Terre: Divise tant en ses Quatre Principales Parties que par Etats et Provinces et Orne ... a Paris chez l’Auteur ... .

Nicholas de Fer (1646–1720)
The son of cartographer Antoine de Fer, Nicholas de Fer was a French publisher and cartographer. Under the tutelage of Parisian engraver Louis Spirinx, he created his maiden map at the age of 23, depicting the Canal du Midi. He assumed control of the family engraving company after his father passed away in June 1673 and set up shop as an engraver, geographer, and map publisher on Quai de L’Horloge in Paris. De Fer produced more than 600 maps and atlases during his illustrious career. Despite having many geographical mistakes, De Fer’s work attracted a sizable fan base because of its strong decorative appeal. His rise to prominence in the late 17th century culminated in his appointment as Geographe de le Dauphin, a role that provided him with unrivaled access to the most recent cartographic data. Guillaume De L’Isle, Premier Geograph de Roi, was a more scholarly geographer who held this office concurrently. Despite very different cartographic approaches, De L’Isle and De Fer seem to have stepped carefully around one another and were rarely publicly at odds.

In 1669, he made a map of the Canal of Languedoc, which is the first work by him that we know about. Some of his oldest engravings can be found in the revised edition of Methode pour Apprendre Facilement la Geographie (1685). His first world map came out in 1697. His wall map of America, which came out in 1698 and has a famous scene of a beaver (engraved by Hendrick van Loon and drawn by Nicolas Guerard), may be his most famous map.

This lot will be shipped unframed.

NON-EXPORTABLE

This lot will be shipped in "as is" condition. For further details, please refer to the images of individual lots as reference for the condition.