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NOLIN, Jean-Baptiste (1657-1725)
[Israel] La Terre Sainte autrefois Terre de Chanaan et de Promission divisée selon ses douze tribus dressée sur l'Ancien et le Nouveau Testament sur l'histoire de Flave Joseph et sur les relations les plus recentes, rectifiées sur les dernieres observations de M[onsieu]rs. de l'Academie des Sciences
Paris: chez l'Auteur, 1700. Copper-engraved wall map, with original outline colour, on four un-joined sheets, each sheet measuring: 21 1/2 x 27 3/4 inches, if joined would form a map measuring approximately: 40 x 51 1/4 inches.
A highly decorative and monumental wall-map of the Holy Land by one of the greatest masters of French Cartography.
This map is an especially dramatic and artistically virtuous composition, and certainly one of Nolin's finest maps. By this time, Jean-Baptiste Nolin had established himself as one of Europe's most prominent cartographers. This map epitomises the superlative quality of engraved decoration, the meticulous detail of geographical rendering and textual descriptions, and the grand scale that were the hallmarks of Nolin's work. Highly ambitious, Nolin went to great lengths to create superior works that could better those of his rivals in an incredibly competitive market.
Geographically, the image embraces all of the lands that were the theatre of Biblical events. The territory covered follows a great arch around the Mediterranean coast, commencing with the Nile Delta, in the lower-left, over past the northern Red Sea, up through modern-day Israel and then north into Lebanon in the upper-right. The land is divided amongst the Twelve Tribes of Israel and features information from the Old and New Testaments, the History of Josephus Flavius and the accounts of Paul de Miglionico who spent thirty years in the Holy Land. The map is flanked on each side by a column featuring highly detailed illustrations. On the left column are six views of Biblical towns, along with two plans of buildings. Of these, the most important are the two insets of Jerusalem, one showing the city at the time of Christ, and the other in its modern form. On the right column are eight views and plans of important holy sights. One of the more spectacular features of this map is the large trompe l'oeil of hanging cloth which covers the Mediterranean, on which extensive explanatory text is written under the general heading 'Description géographique et historique de la Terre Sainte Suite de la table alphabetique'. Overlaying this 'cloth' is the title cartouche surrounded by very fine decorative details. Interestingly, there is a year by year description of the forty year wandering of Moses and the Israelites from Egypt to the Holy Land.
Laor, Maps of the Holy Land 1475-1900, 535
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#15991 $9,000.00 
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© 2002-2005 Donald A. Heald
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