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1849 Mitchell Map of the Kingdom of Sardinia and Peidmont, Italy
KingdomSardinia-mitchell-1849$150.00
Title
Kingdom of Sardinia.
1849 (undated) 13 x 16.5 in (33.02 x 41.91 cm) 1 : 1200000
1849 (undated) 13 x 16.5 in (33.02 x 41.91 cm) 1 : 1200000
Description
This is a beautiful example of the S. A. Mitchell's 1849 map of Kingdom of Sardinia. Centered in Piedmont, this map covers the Kingdom of Sardinia's claims both on the Island of Sardinia and the mainland provinces of Piedmont, Savoy, Aosta, Coni, Nice, and Genoa. Political and topographical features are noted and color coded with elevation rendered by hachure.
The Kingdom of Sardinia or Piedmont-Sardinia was ruled by the House of Savoy since 1720, barring a short period when the mainland domains were annexed by Napoleonic France. The Congress of Vienna however returned these territories to the House of Savoy in 1814 with the inclusion of Genoa. In 1848, just a year before this map was made, King Charles Albert proposed a new constitution, which would eventually become the constitution of the unified Kingdom of Italy in 1861. The region would also be on the brink of the Crimean War (1853 – 1856), a conflict between the Kingdom of Sardinia along with the allied forces of the British, French and Ottoman Empires against the Russian Empire.
The whole is engraved and colored in Mitchell's distinctive style with green border work and vivid pastels. Mitchell published this chart in his atlas from 1846 to the late 1850s before discontinuing the series and selling his map plates to DeSilver. This map was issued in the 1849 edition of the New Universal Atlas. It was the last edition of that atlas to be published by Mitchell prior to selling the plates and rights to the atlas to Thomas Cowperthwait in 1850.
The Kingdom of Sardinia or Piedmont-Sardinia was ruled by the House of Savoy since 1720, barring a short period when the mainland domains were annexed by Napoleonic France. The Congress of Vienna however returned these territories to the House of Savoy in 1814 with the inclusion of Genoa. In 1848, just a year before this map was made, King Charles Albert proposed a new constitution, which would eventually become the constitution of the unified Kingdom of Italy in 1861. The region would also be on the brink of the Crimean War (1853 – 1856), a conflict between the Kingdom of Sardinia along with the allied forces of the British, French and Ottoman Empires against the Russian Empire.
The whole is engraved and colored in Mitchell's distinctive style with green border work and vivid pastels. Mitchell published this chart in his atlas from 1846 to the late 1850s before discontinuing the series and selling his map plates to DeSilver. This map was issued in the 1849 edition of the New Universal Atlas. It was the last edition of that atlas to be published by Mitchell prior to selling the plates and rights to the atlas to Thomas Cowperthwait in 1850.
Cartographer
Samuel Augustus Mitchell (March 20, 1792 - December 20, 1868) began his map publishing career in the early 1830s. Mitchell was born in Bristol, Connecticut. He relocated to Philadelphia in 1821. Having worked as a school teacher and a geographical writer, Mitchell was frustrated with the low quality and inaccuracy of school texts of the period. His first maps were an attempt to rectify this problem. In the next 20 years Mitchell would become the most prominent American map publisher of the mid-19th century. Mitchell worked with prominent engravers J. H. Young, H. S. Tanner, and H. N. Burroughs before attaining the full copyright on his maps in 1847. In 1849 Mitchell either partnered with or sold his plates to Thomas, Cowperthwait and Company who continued to publish the Mitchell's Universal Atlas. By about 1856 most of the Mitchell plates and copyrights were acquired by Charles Desilver who continued to publish the maps, many with modified borders and color schemes, until Mitchell's son, Samuel Augustus Mitchell Junior, entered the picture. In 1859, S.A. Mitchell Jr. purchased most of the plates back from Desilver and introduced his own floral motif border. From 1860 on, he published his own editions of the New General Atlas. The younger Mitchell became as prominent as his father, publishing maps and atlases until 1887, when most of the copyrights were again sold and the Mitchell firm closed its doors for the final time. More by this mapmaker...
Source
Mitchell, S. A., A New Universal Atlas, (S. A. Mitchell; Philadelphia) 1849.
The New Universal Atlas is one of the great American atlases of the mid-19th century. Samuel Augustus Mitchell first issued the atlas in 1846 when he acquired the map plates and copyright for Tanner's New Universal Atlas from its publisher, Carey and Hart. The first transitional 1846 edition was published jointly with Carey and Hart, but a second edition was published in the same year with the Tanner imprint erased. This edition of the atlas also introduced the signature S. A. Mitchell green and pink color scheme. Most of the maps from the early editions of the atlas were engraved by H. N. Burroughs or C. S. Williams, often bearing their copyright. Burroughs maps also tended to have what map collector David Rumsey refers to as the 'Cary and Hart' borders, which featured a narrow vine motif. These borders were replaced, along with the Burroughs imprint, with the more traditional Mitchell strap work border used in the atlases until 1856. Mitchell published editions until late in 1850, when he sold the rights to Thomas, Cowperthwait and Company of Philadelphia. Under Cowperthwait, the atlases continued to be published and bear the Mitchell name until 1856, when the plates were again sold, this time to Charles Desilver. Desilver reworked the plates with new border art and a revised color scheme in the style of J. H. Colton. Desilver issued editions from 1857 to 1860, when the atlas was phased out in favor of Samuel Augustus Mitchell Jr.'s New General Atlas.
Condition
Very good. Minor foxing and overall toning. Minor edge wear.
References
Rumsey 0545.059.