Jasper52 vintage map auction Nov. 5 going global

NEW YORK – A 19th century French terrestrial globe tops an auction of vintage maps that will be conducted by Jasper52 on Tuesday, Nov. 5. Fifteen globes and more than 130 maps and atlases are offered in the online auction. Bid absentee or live online exclusively through LiveAuctioneers.

The leading globe in the sale was made by Delamarche, a family of French geographers and mapmakers, circa 1870. Charles Francois Delamarche (1740-1817) founded the company. The globe (above) measures 14 inches in diameter and is 23 inches high on its wooden stand. It is signed “Maison Delamarche Paris.” The latest date on the globe is 1869, noting the undersea telegraph line between the United States and Europe. This beautiful globe is expected to sell for $2,500-$3,000.

The large J. Elwe (Amsterdam) map of South America provides a fascinating view of the continent in 1792. The course of the Amazon is delineated in a fairly accurate manner, yet it shows the river’s source in an interlacing maze of waterways. The Rio Paraguay erroneously begins in a lake named Xarayes in the middle of Brazil. The map (below) is decorated with an elaborate title and scale of miles cartouches (est. $450-$550).

One of the earliest maps in the auction is the 1598 G. Ruscelli (Venice) map of the Arabian Peninsula. Measuring about 7 by 9 inches, the black and white map charts the Arabian Peninsula and the Persian Gulf with Ethiopia and Somalia also shown in part. Details include topography, settlements, rivers and islands – many being imaginary. This example is the third state of the map, which was first published in 1561 and revised in 1574. This, the final 1598 edition, which is re-engraved and revised to include a sea monster and a ship, is much scarcer than its predecessors (est. $250-$300).

Because old atlases have often been broken apart to sell their maps separately, finding a complete volume is uncommon. A survivor in the sale is the Pierre Lapie Universal Geography Atlas: Ancient and Modern. Pierre M. Lapie (1779-1850) and his son Alexandre Emile Lapie (1809- 1850) were French cartographers and engravers active in the early part of the 19th century. The Lapies were commissioned officers in the French army holding the ranks of colonel and capitan, respectively. Both father and son were exceptional engravers and fastidious cartographers. This complete atlas is a great opportunity to acquire an artistic and historically significant book. It features fine copper engravings with watercolor tinted borders. It includes three folded large maps of the French empire, Italy and England (est. $800-$900).

A modern map of the world is depicted in 1955 brochure promoting Lockheed’s Super Constellation. A picture of the sleek and powerful airliner is superimposed across the top of the map, which shows its routes across the world flown by 18 airlines. This fascinating piece of aviation ephemera has a $50-$60 estimate.

The Jasper52 map and globe auction will be held Tuesday, Nov. 5, beginning at 8 p.m. Eastern time.