Category — Panoramic Maps

This past Friday the 13th marked the 400th anniversary of Czech-born Vaclav “Wenceslaus” Hollar, one of the most famous engravers and draftsperson of his time. He cartographically captured European cities like London and Prague in panoramic and birds-eye views. His influence on graphic design can be seen to this day with the establishment in 1917 of the Czech Hollar Association, a group of Czech graphic artists.

Radio Praha has two articles with some wonderful pictures here and here, as well as a 4 minute radio clip describing Hollar’s life and works.

The Czech National Gallary will hold a retrospective exhibition of his works in October which will include works on loan from Great Britain.

Further to the earlier post regarding the Alan M. and Natalie P. Voorhees Lecture on the History of Cartography this Saturday, March 10th in Virginia, it should be noted that the collection of maps donated to the Library of Virginia by Alan M. Voorhees are cataloged. The records can be viewed in the Library’s online catalog. There are also quite a few digital examples of antique maps, many pertaining to Virginia, available for viewing. Maps are organized into various sections including Virginia and the World and Panoramas.

Via: MapHist

[tags]Online Map Collections, Voorhees, Antique Maps[/tags]

Lately, I have been perusing the Library of Congress’s Geography and Map Division’s online collection of panoramic maps of the United States and Canada from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

Known also as bird’s-eye views, perspective maps, and aero views, panoramic maps are nonphotographic representations of cities portrayed as if viewed from above at an oblique angle. Although not generally drawn to scale, they show street patterns, individual buildings, and major landscape features in perspective.

Perspective mapping gained popularity in Europe in the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries. Mathias Merian, George Braun, Franz Hogenberg, and others made perspective maps of European cities, portraying major political or marketing centers. Most often found in atlases and geographical books, their perspective was usually at a low oblique angle, and streets were seldom identified by name.

Prior to the U.S. Civil War, a modified version of the Renaissance city view was employed:

Preparation of panoramic maps involved a vast amount of painstakingly detailed labor. For each project a frame or projection was developed, showing in perspective the pattern of streets. The artist then walked in the street, sketching buildings, trees, and other features to present a complete and accurate landscape as though seen from an elevation of 2,000 to 3,000 feet. 

Victorian era panoramic maps differ greatly from the Renaissance city perspectives. Views are more accurate and are drawn from a higher oblique angle. Both small and large towns are portrayed. Panoramic mapping is unique to North America during that time period and it reflects the civic pride and vibrancy of the locales portrayed. They were often used to promote a location’s commercial and residenial potential.

The site also includes brief biographies of some of the most prolific American panoramic map artists including Albert Ruger (1829-1899), Thadeus Mortimer Fowler (1842-1922), Oakley H. Bailey (1843-1947), Lucien R. Burleigh (1853-1923) and Henry Wellge (1850-1917).

I hope to find online examples of European Renaissance perspective maps in the near future.

[tags]Panoramic Maps, Perspective Maps, Antique Maps, Famous Cartographers, Cartographic History, Cartographic Terminology[/tags]