''NOVA VIRGINIÆ TABVLA'' John Smith. Amsterdam: Henri Hondius, c. 1639. Verso: French. Derivative 5, State 1. Important foundation map of the Chesapeake Bay! Fine original engraved map with original hand-coloring. (Image: 15 x 19 ½’’).
(Ref: Potter: Antique Maps, p. 153; Tooley: The Mapping of America, pl 73; Burden #228).
This important map of Virginia is beautifully engraved & detailed. The Smith map was the first printed map of Virginia & had profound impact on the mapping of the colony - serving as the basic prototype of the region. This map identifies various settlements & reflects information gathered by Smith’s early explorations of the area.
Upper left has a large view of King Powhatan & his court judging Capt. Smith. The upper right displays a coat-of-arms surmounted by a crown & circled by the symbol of the garter. Under the coat-of-arms is a native Indian holding a bow in the left hand & a club in the right.
Smith’s explorations & discoveries of the area were first published by William Hole, c. 1612. Jodocus Hondius published the first continental version in 1618. This plate was then purchased by Blaeu, following Jodocus’ death, & published in his Atlas with only the imprint altered. Henry Hondius, quite angry at his competitor’s acquisition, had the map re-engraved & published in his own atlas (the Indian faces left, instead of right).
Shipped unmatted
