Catalog Archive
Auction 190, Lot 190

"Map and Profile of the Colorado River Aqueduct",

Subject: Southern California

Period: 1940 (circa)

Publication:

Color: Printed Color

Size:
19.6 x 9.2 inches
49.8 x 23.4 cm
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This detailed panoramic view issued by the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California presents the topography of the region from Boulder Dam and the Colorado River west to Los Angeles. It highlights the path of the Colorado River aqueduct and locates various dams, tunnels, pump lifts, reservoirs and more. A profile at bottom visually depicts the challenge of constructing an aqueduct through such a rugged region, though the pencil notation states “the country is not near as mountainous as it looks here, it is mostly broad valleys with mountains between them.” Completed in 1941, it runs 242 miles across the Mojave and Colorado Deserts and is a major source of water to Southern California. In 1955 it was designated one of the seven wonders of American engineering by the American Society of Civil Engineers. Self-folding (6.6 x 9.1") with title "Water for the Thirteen Golden Cities of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California."

References:

Condition: B+

Issued folding with a few faint spots of foxing, one tiny repaired fold separation at bottom, and pencil notations along the bottom sheet edge.

Estimate: $180 - $220

Sold for: $100

Closed on 11/16/2022

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