Europe - .; Claude Buy de Mornas (+-1717 /1783) - François-Nicolas Martinet (1731 /1800) - Louis Charles Desnos - "Europe" - 1761-1780

The composition is enclosed within a rich and detailed frame engraved with floral motifs and Baroque elements, which integrates small illustrative details such as open books and measuring instruments at the corners, giving the work notable artistic and collectible value. Inside the cartouche is a detailed map with colored borders in epoch style.

The inscriptions and dense columns of text surrounding the map have a very precise meaning: they constitute a true didactic manual and an ancient historical-chronological compendium of the map represented. The text explains the geopolitical situation during Roman domination, details of the region, peoples, and main cities.

Copperplate engraving in black and white, excellent inking and intaglio printing on laid paper with watermark, wide margins, all as in the photo. Good state of preservation, slight traces of foxing and browning. Editorial fold and visible binding marks. Insured shipping via Bartolini/DPD courier. To benefit from the insurance coverage, any damage to the neck (case) must be contested and reported to the courier at the time of delivery. Otherwise, it will not be possible to activate the insurance refund procedure.

The work is the result of the combined efforts of two key figures of 18th-century French cartography:

The author of the contents and geographer: Claude Buy de Mornas (died in 1783). He was a renowned French geographer and historian, awarded the prestigious title of Géographe de Monseigneur le Duc de Berry (the future King Louis XVI). He was the one who conceived the historical-didactic framework and the explanatory texts of the entire work.
He was a French geographer and professor of the eighteenth century. In 1761 he published, together with Louis-Charles Desnos, the important work entitled Atlas Méthodique et Elémentaire de Géographie et d'Histoire. His maps and geographical charts (including the works on Africa and celestial maps) are preserved in collections of rare and ancient prints.

The publisher, geographer and executor: Louis-Charles Desnos (1725–1805). A prominent Parisian cartographer and bookseller with a shop on Rue Saint-Jacques, he held the coveted title of "Royal Globe-maker" for King Christian VII of Denmark. Desnos took care of drawing the maps, coordinating the engravings, and physically publishing the volumes in his printing shop.

Alongside these two figures is François-Nicolas Martinet (1731–1800), the extraordinary artist and engraver who actually drew and cut on copper the lavish Rococo frames surrounding every plate of the atlas. Would you like to delve into the biography of one of these figures or receive details about the printing techniques used by Desnos in his Paris shop?

Claude Buy de Mornas was an important French geographer, historian, and geography professor active in the mid-18th century. Although little personal biographical information about him is available, his importance lies in the prestigious institutional roles he held at the French court and his innovative didactic approach to cartography.

He was named Geographer of Monseigneur the Duke of Berry (Géographe de Monseigneur le Duc de Berry), who at the time was the very young nephew of Louis XV.

When the Duke of Berry ascended the throne as Louis XVI, Buy de Mornas retained the official position, becoming in effect the King’s Geographer (Géographe du Roy).

Louis Charles Desnos (1725 – 18 April 1805) was a French geographer of the eighteenth century, a Parisian bookseller and the "geographer-engineer for the globes and spheres of His Danish Majesty", Christian VII. He ran a shop on Rue Saint-Jacques, at the Globe.

François-Nicolas Martinet (Paris, 1731 – 1800) was one of the most famous and prolific French designers and engravers of the eighteenth century. His signature on your plate ("par Martinet") adds enormous artistic and collectible value.