L'Afrique

This charming French atlas map of Africa shows seemingly good geographical knowledge, with dense mapping of the countries that line the coastline of the Continent; in the north from Morocco to Libya, in the east working south from Egypt to Ethiopia along the Red Sea, in the west from Senegal to Nigeria, and also in Angola and South Africa. The detail of the interior however is lacking, particularly in central and southern Africa and in the western Sahara Desert. It is no surprise that the access to geography would have been a result of these regions being colonised and then explored by Europeans. Coloured outlines have been used to highlight the boundaries between regions and Kingdoms (“Royaume de …”) shown on the map, although this colouring does not appear to be in line with any colonial control at the time and more an element of artistic license.

A road can be seen between Timbuktu and a lake in modern day Algeria, named “Lac Mousa”. This would have been part of an ancient trade and caravan route - no other parts of this vast trade network is shown on the map. It could also be part of the route taken by Mansa Musa – the King of Mali, during his extraordinary pilgrimage to Mecca in 1324.

The legendary “Mountains of the Moon” are present and shown almost in the centre of the Continent. This mountain range was said to be the source of the River Nile (now known as the Rwenzori Mountains).

The map has been splendidly engraved, with hachuring and stippling to accentuate the coastlines, mountainous regions and bodies of water. The illustrated title cartouche depicts a rural scene of huts, trees, foliage, and a coastline to the right.

This map is based upon the work of Italian mapmaker Antonio Zatta, and is published in Venice.

Coloured. [AFR4866]