Catalog Archive
Auction 129, Lot 690

"The Island and Kingdom of Sicily According to the Best Observations, & Improved from the Map of the Baron de Schmettau…", Mylne, Robert

Subject: Sicily, Italy

Period: 1799 (dated)

Publication: A New Universal Atlas

Color: Hand Color

Size:
26.8 x 19 inches
68.1 x 48.3 cm
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Robert Mylne, a Scottish architect and civil engineer, is better known for his design for Blackfriars Bridge in London than for cartography. Mylne studied architecture under the direction of Giovanni Battista Piranesi in Rome. In the spring of 1757, Mylne accompanied the diplomat Richard Phelps and antiquarian Matthew Nulty on a tour of Sicily where he undertook the preparation of this map to pay for his studies. The map draws together several important cartographical sources including the maps of Austrian General Samuel von Schmettau and French cartographer Jean Baptiste Bourguignon d'Anville. The map shows the three provinces and the county of Modica. The topography is depicted through hachure and specific types of terrain are noted such as steep ridges and dry washes. Details include roads, inns, watch towers, forests, fortified towns, and lava fields. Particular attention is paid to Mount Etna with areas denoted as cultivated, wooded, or naked. The unique title cartouche is set within a compass rose supported by a pair of cherubs. The map was published by Laurie & Whittle.

References:

Condition: B+

Original color with oxidation in the sea. The paper is still very sturdy. There are tissue repairs on short fold separations.

Estimate: $800 - $950

Unsold

Closed on 9/23/2009

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