1769 LEGENDRE, Jean-Gabriel. - Rare wall map of a plan of Reims, engraved by Jean Lattré.
Plan général de Reims et de ses Environs Dédié au Roi.
| Maker: | LEGENDRE, Jean-Gabriel. | |
| Date: | Paris, Lattré, 1769 | |
| Colored: | Uncolored. | |
| Size: | 1110 x 1410 mm / 43.7 x 55.5 inches | |
| Condition: | Wall map in two sheets accompanied by borders in 7 boards engraved separately. The plan if joined, without the borders is 820 x 1140 mm. | |
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Description
Behind him, Romulus and Remus stand against the Roman wolf (according to legend, the city of Reims was founded by Remus). On the ancient monument "Scale of 300 toises".
The map is placed in an illustrated frame of 26 medallions engraved by C.R.J. Poulleau, showing the monuments of the city: the gates and fountains, including the gate of Mars and the ones of the walks, the churches Saint Nicaise and Notre Dame, the royal square, and several monuments now missing (the church of Saint Peter the Ladies, the castle of the archbishops, the city hall "which was supposed to be completed", the project of two buildings opposite the city hall).
This plan of the architect Jean-Gabriel Legendre, engineer of the king assigned to the province of Champagne, takes again the vast project of embellishment of the city which he had conceived. This project also provided, in addition to the development of the royal square and public walks, the alignment of several streets, the clearing of the approaches to the cathedral, and the transformation of several city accesses.
This plan exists in two versions with a slightly different title: "General Plan of the City of Reims" and "General Plan of Reims and its Surroundings", sometimes with an added border. The plan presented is titled "General Plan of Reims and its Surroundings" and includes its border.
Dare to go in Black. Early maps were printed in black and white; many stayed that way for a long time. A black-and-white map with such a strong impression is a rarity nowadays, as so many have been colored in recently! ¤
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Wall Maps
Wall maps were found in the interiors of wealthy businessmen. Wall maps occupied a prominent place in contemporary Dutch culture, serving as icons of affluence and intellectual curiosity.One of the leading lights of the era, Constantijn Huygens (1596-87), remarked how he employed his own set of Blaeu's wall maps of the continents as a tool to enlighten his children: "To encourage them even more, I had the four parts of the world by Willem Blaeu mounted in my entrance hall, where they often played, in order to provide them with a fixed image of the world and its division."
Willem Blaeu's wall maps are considered among the most influential and artistically virtuosic masterpieces of the great era of baroque cartography. His enterprise maintained close connections with intellectuals and political leaders across Europe, granting him privileged access to the most advanced geographical knowledge. Evidence of their fame may be their appearance in several of Johannes Vermeer's paintings.
A striking feature of the relatively small number of paintings that comprise the oeuvre of Johannes Vermeer is the prominent place accorded to maps and globes. Maps used as wall hangings in contemporary Dutch houses served purposes beyond providing cartographic information. Maps also expressed status, promoted a better understanding of history or politics, or replaced paintings. When Vermeer painted his works, Amsterdam was the world center of map-making. Among the most impressive works were Willem Blaeu's wall maps.
The pride-of-place wall maps in Dutch homes appear most clearly in a half-dozen or so of Vermeer's exquisite paintings, as well as in contemporary scenes such as Pieter de Hooch's A Woman Drinking with Two Men (1658) in the National Gallery. These views of everyday life bear witness to an almost totemic cult of maps.
Soon, libraries and the offices of the wealthy and nobility across Europe had wall maps. Wall maps also hung in many places in America in the eighteenth century, for instance, in the Governor's Palace in Williamsburg, Virginia.
By the nineteenth century, Americans used wall maps throughout the Country. They hung in government offices, public meeting places, schools and in some homes. Early on in the century, wall maps showed the expanding country, with its natural features and political divisions, roads, canals and then railroads. Because these maps were designed for practical use and their large format made detailed study easier, map makers updated them regularly to keep them as current and accurate as possible.
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