Carte De La Louisiane Et De La Floride. [18th Century French Map of Florida].

[FLORIDA],.

$600.00

Item Number: 139014

Paris: Rigobert Bonne, [1797].

Rare 18th century map of North America by Royal Hydrographer Rigobert Bonne. One page, the engraved map extends from Illinois to Florida with one of the earliest insets of Kansas City. Born in the Lorraine region of France, French cartographer Rigobert Bonne (1727-1794) was a skilled cartographer and hydrographer and succeeded Jacques Nicolas Bellin as Royal Hydrographer at the Depot de la Marine in 1773. He published many charts for the Depot, including some of those for the Atlas Maritimeof 1762. In near fine condition. Matted and framed. The entire piece measures 17 inches by 16 inches.

La Louisiane (named after Louis XIV of France) became a colony of the Kingdom of France in 1682, before passing to Spain in 1763. Louisiana was formed in part of the became part of the Louisiana Purchase from France in 1803. The U.S. would divide that area into two territories, the Territory of Orleans, which formed what would become the boundaries of Louisiana, and the District of Louisiana. Louisiana was admitted as the 18th state of the United States on April 30, 1812. Appointed hydrographer of the French Navy at the age of eighteen, Jacques-Nicolas Bellin was appointed Hydrographer to the King in 1741. He published numerous sea atlases and charts which would be reprinted into the nineteenth century, as well as many maps depicting French colonial territories in the New World. His craftsmanship and commitment to accuracy earned him a distinguished reputation as one of the world's leading cartographers, and many other European mapmakers turned to him for source material.