Richly Decorative Map of the Northeast of the Early 18th Century

HOMANN, J. B. [Nuremberg, 1724]

Northeast/ New Jersey. HOMANN, J. B. [Nuremberg, 1724] Nova Anglia Septentrionali Americae implantata . . . 19 ¼ x 22 ¾ inches.  Fine original wash color; lightly age-toned, a few light stains, overall very good with a strong impression.     

                                                  
An attractive, original-colored example of one of the few collectible maps of the Northeast of the early 18th century, which embodied an interesting blend of older Dutch and more recent English sources.  The map shows that as the number of English settlements increased in the area, Native American tribal names are notably less plentiful than on Dutch maps of the previous century.  Nonetheless, the attractive cartouche shows a European merchant bartering with an Indian for an animal pelt, one of the mainstays of the early New England economy.  The cartouche also reveals what the European was offering for trade, including beads, a barrel (filled with liquor?), guns, hatchets, tools, and textiles.

Interestingly, the map shows a strait bisecting Cape Cod in the area of present-day Eastham and Wellfleet.  Historical accounts and early maps and charts demonstrate that there existed a water passage in this area from the mid-17th to the first part of the 18th century.  In the area of outer Cape Cod is the designation “Table Land,” referring to the expanse of sand dunes in this area.  The coast line of northern New England through Maine is drawn tolerably well.  In the area of present-day Montauk, the map notes “Fort Wisser Hoek,” about which we found no references.  New Jersey is divided into East and West on the map.

McKorkle, B. New England in Early Printed Maps, Map 724.1.

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