Chart, containing the Coasts of California, New Albion, and Russian Discoveries to the North; with the Peninsula of Kamtschatka, in Asia, opposite thereto; and Islands, dispersed over the Pacific Ocean, to the north of the Line.

1775 Sayer and Bennet / Braddock Mead Map of North America

Publication Date: 1775

About this Item

Average. Laid down on archival paper. Several repaired splits and tears. Discoloration along the left side. Wear and splits (reinforced) along some of the old fold lines. Size 20 x 45 Inches. A 1775 map of North America by John Green, also known as Braddock Mead. The map is a masterpiece of late 18th-century cartography by one of the least understood and most controversial cartographers of his age. Mead composed the map in protest to what he considered the flagrantly spurious and irresponsible cartography of Frenchmen Joseph-Nicolas De l'Isle (1688 - 1768) and Phillipe Buache (1700 - 1773). It is noteworthy for its treatment of the speculative 'River of the West,' its naming of the Chinese colony of Fusang, and its tentative mapping of the Aleutian archipelago. A Forthright Cartographer The cartographer, Braddock Mead / John Green, is uncommonly forthright with his process. Through the map's many annotations, a reader can follow his reasoning as he attempts to piece together a mostly unexplored continent. The map contains three tables where Mead offers his own coordinates for comparison with those of Bellin and D'Anville, thus supporting the superiority of his research. Throughout, he references explorations and discoveries, offering commentary and delineating the routes of notable navigators, including Baffin, Hudson, Bering, and others. A Closer Look The map embraces from Hudson Bay to the northern part of South America, inclusive of the modern-day United States, Canada, Mexico, and Central America. Mead offers a wealth of commentary concerning the known and unknown, particularly as relates to the Transmississippi. It notes, but gives no credence to, the spurious discoveries of Admiral de Fonte, as well as the more factual discoveries of Francis Drake, Juan de Fuca, and Martin D'Aguilar. Further north, we find the legendary Chinese colony of Fusang. To the south, an expansive River of the West (the Columbia River?) stretches from the supposed location of Aguilar's Inlet (1693) inland to connect with Lake Winnipeg. Fusang Along the coast of modern-day British Columbia, in an unexplored zone identified by ghosted lines, is the postulated Chinese colony of Fusang. Fusang or Fousang was first documented by the 5th-century Chinese Buddhist missionary Hui Shen. Hui Shen describes a land some 20,000 Chinese Li (c. 8000 km) east of the China coast. Fusang is described in considerable detail in Yao Silian's 7th-century Book of Liang. There are also accounts that the land was settled c. 220 BC by a Chinese Emperor of the Han. In later days, Fusang was commonly used in Chinese poetry to designate Japan. However, earlier references keep it distinct. In any case, Hui Shen's description of Fusang, with regard to distance and geography, corresponds more with the coast of North America than with Japan. The French historian Joseph de Guignes promoted Fusang in his 1761 article Le Fou-Sang des Chinois est-il l'Amerique? . Cartographers of the era, including Buache de Neuville, Zatta, Robert de Vaugondy, and others, included Fusang on many of their maps. Islands of Silver and Gold Despite Mead's attempts to correct the errors of his contemporaries, he makes plenty of his own. At the far west of the map, we note with interest the 'Rica de Plata' (Silver Island) and 'Rica de Oro' (Gold Island). These islands, believed to lie east of Japan, were so saturated in precious metals that the tall, friendly, light-skinned inhabitants even fashioned their homes out of gold. They were first reported to western navigators by Francisco Gali (1539 - 1586), the captain of the Manila galleon San Juan Bautista , who heard of them while visiting Macao in 1582 - 83. Most likely, the tales were derived from Japanese folklore. Wishful thinking, nonetheless, drove at least three expeditions to unsuccessfully search for them. Publication History and Census This map was drawn by Braddock Mead for Thomas Jefferys, but here was published by Sayer and Bennett in 1775 for.

Seller Inventory # NorthAmerica-sayerbennett-1775

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Chart, containing the Coasts of California, New Albion, and Russian Discoveries to the North; with the Peninsula of Kamtschatka, in Asia, opposite thereto; and Islands, dispersed over the Pacific Ocean, to the north of the Line.
• Publication Date: 1775
• Seller catalogs:
  • NORTH-AMERICA