1735 HOMANN HEIRS - The first printed map specifically of the Uzbek region

This is the first printed map specifically of the Uzbek region. It shows the area around the Caspian Sea and northern Iran. The area eastward from the Caspian is marked 'UZBECK,' including modern-day Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and part of Kazakhstan.
A finely engraved, uncolored title piece showing costume figures decorates the map, which identifies towns such as Astrakan, Eriwan, Isphahan, Samarkand, and Cabul, and, unusually, shows trade routes. The cartouche depicts three Uzbeks and a Streltsy (a Muscovite infantryman) in a vineyard. A scimitar, a bow and arrow, and bunches of grapes are at the base of the cartouche. One of the Uzbeks is seated, his shoes removed, leisurely smoking a shisha pipe.

Oriented east to the top.

The map was prepared by Abraham Maas, edited by Johann Peter von Ghelen, and published by Homann Heirs in 1735. Following Tsar Peter's 1723 annexation of the western coast of the Caspian Sea, an embassy was sent to Khiva, Bukhara, and Balkh, of which Abraham Maas is thought to have been included. The embassy produced a map published in Moscow that year and submitted it as a manuscript to the Tsar, preserved in the library of the Russian Academy of Sciences in St. Petersburg.

Maas produced a faithful copy of that Russian map, translated into Latin. Von Ghelen's edition, committed to print here by Homann Heirs, presents indigenous toponymy east of the Caspian Sea for the first time. And indeed, Maas' map reveals a catalog of new place names: countries, administrative regions, deserts, seas, mountains, and towns which were not previously known to western geographers. In addition, a network of roads linking the Caspian to Kabul is shown.
The map is of interest as the Silk Road Route passing the area is included.

The route starts in the west with Baghdad and the major route reaching east can be seen running to Isfahan, and ultimately Kandahar. Northern branches link Samarkhand, Kabul, and Kashgar.
The map is also interesting as it is one of the first to detail the Aral Sea: once a massive lake, now an infamous desert. It is one of the earliest maps to distinguish the Aral Sea from the Caspian Sea. The Amu and Syr rivers run east to west, both flowing into the Aral. An ancient diversion of the Amu from the Aral Sea into the Caspian can also be seen.
The map has rich detail and copious notations. Forests, mountains, and wetlands are shown pictorially. The Caspian shoreline is marked with depth soundings. An attractive cartouche depicts three Uzbeks and a Streltsy—a Muscovite infantryman— situated in a vineyard.

A scimitar, a bow and arrow, and bunches of grapes are at the base of the cartouche. One of the Uzbeks is seated, his shoes removed, leisurely smoking a shisha pipe.