Catalog Archive
Auction 194, Lot 33

NO RESERVE

"Ptolemy's Universal Map",

Subject: Ancient World

Period: 1770 (circa)

Publication: Le Spectacle de la Nature

Color: Black & White

Size:
7.4 x 5.5 inches
18.8 x 14 cm
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This interesting map superimposes a modern map of the eastern hemisphere over a map of the world as described by Ptolemy. The Ptolemaic world is shown with solid lines, while the modern map is drawn with fainter lines. A few of the notable differences between the ancient and modern worlds are the outline of Africa, an oversized Tabropana (Sri Lanka) in place of the East Indies, and the discovery of Australia. Published in an English edition of Noel Antoine Pluche's Le Spectacle de la Nature, a book dedicated to natural history.

References:

Condition: B+

Issued folding with light toning along one fold and the sheet's edges.

Estimate: $80 - $100

Sold for: $17

Closed on 9/13/2023

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