Isthmus of Panama. [John Tallis Engraved Mid 19th Century Map of Panama].

TALLIS, John; engraved by John Rapkin [Panama].

Item Number: 139020

London: The London Printing and Publishing Company, c. 1851.

Mid 19th century steel-engraved, hand-colored map of the Isthmus of Panama engraved by J. Rapkin (vignettes by H. Warren & J. Wrightson) and published in John Tallis & co.’s The Illustrated Atlas (London & New York: c.1851). One page, hand-colored, the steel-engraved map depicts Central America with vignettes of the Fort at Chagres (Fort San Lorenzo) and ‘Gold Seekers on their way over the Cordilleras. Matted and framed, the entire piece measures 22 inches by 19 inches.

For the Great Exhibition of 1851, English mapmaker John Tallis published the Illustrated World Atlas, one of the last series of decorative world maps ever produced. The maps were engraved by John Rapkin, a skilled artisan. The maps were later reissued by the London Printing & Publishing Company, who left the Tallis imprint intact, thus ensuring his enduring fame.