Nova Anglia Septentrionali Americae implantata Anglorumque coloniis florentissima Geographica exhibita

Nova Anglia Septentrionali Americae implantata Anglorumque coloniis florentissima Geographica exhibita


Nuremberg | [ca 1716] | 61.4 x 53 cm | one map
Beautiful copy of one of the rare maps of the American North-East in the early eighteenth century, showing the region as it was considered before the British government commissioned more in-depth cartographic studies on the subject.
his map is the work of Johann Baptist Homann (1664-1724), one of the most well-known cartographers, founder of one of the most important German publishing houses.
Conceived while the region was still being discovered, it shows a certain number of inaccuracies: Cape Cod is represented as an island and the port of Boston appears larger than its true size. The size of some lakes is exaggerated, whereas Lake Champlain is farther east that its actual location. Seneca Lake (New York State) is shown to be an immense sea that flows into the Hudson Valley and Lake George is then called «Lake Iroquois.» The representation of New France in the North is also inaccurate insofar as Montreal (Mont Royal) takes the shape of a huge island immediately adjacent to Lake Ontario. We also note the presence of the legendary Norumbega colony.
It is also one of the very first representations of New York City: Manhattan is identified as an island captioned «N. Loch,» which helps to identify this map as a second state.
Very beautiful copy.