Copper engraving handcolored with watercolor.

Outline color.

Relief shown pictorially.

Printed in top border: "Carte Du Congo Et Du Pays Des Cafres Par G. De l'Isle de l'Academie Royale des Sciences."

Printed in top border in upper left corner is a scale for marine leagues.

Printed in lower right corner in border: "A Paris Chez l'Auteur sur le Quai de l'Horloge avec Privilege Janvier 1708."

Written in ink in upper right corner: "74."

Depicts southern and central Africa as well as Madagascar and other islands in the Indian Ocean. Dutch settlements in southern Africa are shown including Fort Hollandois and Hellenbok. Includes comments regarding native kingdoms and European settlements. Mountains, rivers and lakes and shown using pictorial symbols.

Prime Meridian: Isle de Fer.

Guillaume de L'Isle (1675-1726) was a cartographer and the Premier Geographer to the King in France beginning in 1718. His family played a significant part in the world of French cartography in the eighteenth century. At age 9, he drew his first map and at age 27 he became a member of the Académie Royale des Sciences. He studied under Jacques Cassini, acquiring knowledge in both mathematics and astronomy. Due to his academic background and his "critical approach to the maps of his predecessors," he became known as the first "scientific cartographer" (Moreland and Bannister, 132). Among his works are "Globe, map of the world and the four continents" (1700), "Atlas de Géographie" (1700-12), "Mississippi" (1701), "Carte du Mexique et de la Floride…" (c.a. 1703), "Carte de la Louisiane et du Mississippi" (1718) and posthumously, "Atlas Noveau" (1730 and later). Following his death, his widow, Marie Angélique de L'Isle took up the business with a partner, Philippe Buache (Tooley 395; Moreland and Bannister, 131-2). This particular map was first published in De L'Isle's "Atlas de Geographie." The map follows the geographic information known of this part of Africa current to the time period. Source(s): Moreland, Carl and David Bannister. "Antique Maps: A Collector's Handbook." New York: Longman Group, Ltd., 1983. Tooley, Ronald Vere. "Tooley's Dictionary of Mapmakers." Hertfordshire: Map Collector Publications Limited, 1979.

• Subjects (LCSH): Africa--Maps--Early works to 1800; Africa, Central--Maps--Early works to 1800; Africa, Southern--Maps--Early works to 1800