Guillaume Danet (1670 – 1732) was a Paris based French bookseller and map publisher active in the late 17th and early 18th century. Danet married Marguerite-Geneviève De Fer becoming the son-in-law of the cartographer and map publisher Nicolas De Fer (1626 – 1720). Along with his brothers and brothers-in-law, Jacques-François Bénard (Besnard) Danet (husband of Marie-Anne De Fer and engraver to the King of Spain) and Remi Richer (an engraver who sold portion of the De Fer business to his brothers in 1721), Guillaume Danet inherited a portion Nicolas De Fer's publishing business in 1720. Both Danet and Bénard used the De Fer name and signage concurrently. Danet maintained a book and map shop on the Pont Notre-Dame. After Danet's own death in 1732, the business was continued by his widow, Marguerite-Geneviève, until about 1746. Marguerite-Geneviève died in 1746 after which many of the De Fer / Danet plates were acquired by Louis Charles Desnos. More by this mapmaker...

Guillaume De l’Isle (1675 - 1726) was a French cartographer, and arguably the finest mapmaker at the beginning of the eighteenth century. He was the son of Claude De L'Isle (1644 -1720), a Paris-based historian and geographer under Nicholas Sanson, then the leading light of French cartography. He was the chief proponent of the school of 'positive geography' and the primary figure defining the heights of the Golden Age of French Cartography. Guillaume's skill as a cartographer was so prodigious that he drew his first map at just nine years of age. He was tutored by J. D. Cassini in astronomy, science, mathematics and cartography. By applying these diverse disciplines to the vast stores of information provided by 18th century navigators, Guillaume created the technique that came to be known as 'scientific cartography', essentially an extension of Sanson's 'positive geography'. This revolutionary approach transformed the field of cartography and created a more accurate picture of the world. Among Guillaume's many firsts are the first naming of Texas, the first correct map of the Mississippi, the final rejection of the insular California fallacy, and the first identification of the correct longitudes of America. Stylistically De L'Isle also initiated important changes to the medium, eschewing the flamboyant Dutch style of the previous century in favor of a highly detailed yet still decorative approach that yielded map both beautiful and informative. Guillaume was elected to the French Academie Royale des Sciences at 27. Later, in 1718, he was also appointed 'Premier Geographe du Roi', an office created especially for him. De L'Isle personally financed the publication of most of his maps, hoping to make heavy royalties on their sales. Unfortunately he met an untimely death in 1728, leaving considerable debt and an impoverished child and widow. De L'Isle's publishing firm was taken over by his assistant, Phillipe Buache, who would also become his son in law. Learn More...