Historical Maps, Charts and City Views

Adventurers, traders and explorers proved cast expanses of land and water were not barriers separating them from the wonders and riches of other countries, but passageways that connected the world.

Marco Polo's legendary journey through India and China led to the Ptolemaic model that, through erroneous, gave Europeans their first vision of the exotic Far East. During the late 16th and early 17th centuries the first European maps of Asia appeared. These detailed, soft copper engravings remained the cartographer's desired medium for several centuries, though few prints could be produced in great quantity. In the early 1800's steel plates were introduced, and by the mid 1800's American firms began producing maps and scenes of the world.

This exhibition features antique maps, nautical charts and views of Asia, dating from the 17th through the 19th century. Early European cooper engravings, chromoliths and Allom lithos, recording landmarks, theatrical and palace scenes, costumes and customs, add to the historical context.