One of the Rare Antique Maps Published Exclusively by a Woman

"Americae Nova Descriptio", Seile, Anae

This map of the Americas is based on Henry Seile's map of 1652 (Anae's husband). For unknown reasons, after Henry's death his plates passed to his business partner, Philip Chetwind. Lacking the original plates, Anae enlisted Robert Vaughan to engrave this new plate for her own publication of Heylin's Cosmography. Therefore, this is one of the few maps published exclusively by a woman, with her own imprint. The map is very similar to the earlier map, although the nomenclature of the Delaware River, Carolina, and several places on the west coast have been changed. It depicts California as an Island and features no Great Lakes. The region west of New Mexico is labeled Quivira, and the mythical city of Cibola is identfied. In South America, two spurious lakes, Parime and Eupana, are located. The phantom islands of Frisland, I. dos Demonias, and Brasil appear in the North Atlantic. The map is decorated with a title cartouche, sea monsters, and sailing ships.

References: Burden #379; McLaughlin #35; Tooley (America) p.115, #12.

Condition: B

Issued folding and now flat on watermarked paper with an archivally repaired edge tear at left that extends 5" into the image. The sheet has been trimmed to the border at right (by the binder) and inside the neatline at top left, with a narrow strip of masking tape along the top border on verso from a previous framing with tape stains visible on recto. There is light toning along the left border and additional old tape remnants in the bottom blank margin on verso.