Carte Particuliere de la Mer Rouge & c

Extraordinary example of Mortier's chart of the east coast of Africa from modern Tanzania, through Kenya, Somalia, Ethiopia, Sudan and Egypt as well as the Yemen and Saudi Arabia. Insets of the islands of Mombasa and Socotra.


The cartouche states that the sources for this map were from the archives of the King of Portugal. As with all of the maps of Africa present in the "Neptune Francois", the source charts were obtained by the French diplomat, N.P. Ablancourt, who gained access to the Portuguese cartographic archive and whose charts were in turn accessed by Charles Pene and Pierre Mortier for the "Suite de Neptune", the third Volume of the Neptune Francois published in 1700.


The chart is oriented showing north to the right. Unsurprisingly, the emphasis is on areas of Portuguese interest, namely the island of Mombasa and its Portuguese fort, Fort Jesus, illustrated in the two insets. Mombasa was a port and settlement of high commercial and strategic importance in the region and by 1700, had just been invaded and conquered by the Omani Empire, possibly prompting increased European interest and awareness of this coast. Detail on the Red Sea is also sourced from Portuguese charts. The final inset shows the island of Socotra, initially a hoped-for control point for shipping lanes in the near seas but found to be unsuitable after several Portuguese shipping disasters due to the lack of a suitable harbour. Arguably the most detailed commercially available chart of this coastline for the period.


The "Neptune Francois" was first issued simultaneously in Paris and Amsterdam by Hubert Jaillot and Pierre Mortier respectively in 1693. The project was highly successful and Mortier developed the Atlas by adding two more sections or volumes to it. The first, Vol II was also issued in 1693 and consisted of a set of charts provided by the noted Dutch artist Romeyn de Hooghe. Collectively these are known as the "Cartes Marines a l'Usage des Armees du Roy de Grande Bretagne" and were originally drawn for William III of Great Britain. De Hooghe was primarily an artist and his charts bear a distinctive pictorial aspect. They have become renowned for their aesthetics, being cited as the most beautiful set of charts ever published. Volume III added in 1700, entitled "Suite de Neptune" concentrated on charts outside of French territory, including maps of the New World, the West Indies, South East Asia and the Indian Ocean among others.


Mortier's edition was a prestige work. Later scholars have found that his book was the most expensive sea atlas produced in Amsterdam up to that time. On the rare occasions that an example of one of the maps in full original colour can be obtained, it is easily perceived why this work is cited as one of the finest and most spectacular atlases ever produced.


Magnificent original colour. [AFR6054] (BC)

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