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1862 Mége y Willems Panoramic View of Montevideo, Uruguay
Montevideo-mege-1862$3,250.00
Title
Montevideo.
1862 (undated) 14.25 x 45.25 in (36.195 x 114.935 cm)
1862 (undated) 14.25 x 45.25 in (36.195 x 114.935 cm)
Description
An astonishing survival, this beautiful, grand lithograph is the sole recorded example of Luciano Mége's c. 1862 panoramic view of the capital of Uruguay, Montevideo. It is one of the earliest, if not the earliest, views of the city that was printed in Montevideo.
A Closer Look
The view is taken from the bay, which is bustling with sailboats and steamships. Of particular note is the American steamship Mississippi, which between 1860 and 1862 operated the connection between Montevideo and Buenos Aires in Argentina; its presence here helps date the map. In the background can be seen the quays and the landing stage of the port, the Charity Hospital, the Matriz Cathedral. The old customs buildings appear, which were completed in 1857 but demolished in 1890 for as part of the development of the port.Publication History and Census
This map was published Luciano Mége or his widow in 1861 or 1862, in conjunction with his partner Guillermo Willems. The date is based on the presence of the steamship Mississippi. This is of the utmost rarity: there are no copies in public collections, including the national archives of Uruguay.Cartographer
Mége, Luciano (fl. 1843 - 1862) was a French-born engraver and lithographer, working in Montevideo in the middle of the 19th century. Nothing is known of him apart from his work. In the 1840s he worked on behalf of the Uruguayan mint, producing coins, stamps, and paper money. One of the most sought after Uruguayan coins, the 1844 'Sol De Cabellera,' has been attributed to Mége on the basis of comparison with his work on a stamp of the same period. After the close of the national mint in 1845, Mége operated his own shop, albeit continuing to produce matter for the government. In 1860 his ship printed El Digesto Nacional, a record of laws, government decrees and other resolutions and official acts. Mége produced a lithograph portrait of the Colorado party's Gabriel Antonio Pereira (1794 -1861) during his presidency, and his imprint has appeared on a panoramic view of Montevideo, and one of Buenos Aires. We see no other documents attributed to Mége's print shop any later than 1860, and no further record of the man. It is possible that following the election of Bernardo Prudencio Berro (1803 - 1868) and the passage of power from the Colorado party to the Blancos, Mége's print shop may have lost the governmental contracts that were his primary source of work. He began an association with the German lithographer Guillermo Willems as early as 1856, printing stamps under the name Mége y Willems. After his 1862 death, his widow continued the business with Willems. After 1869 the company was renamed Mege y Compania. More by this mapmaker...
Condition
Very good. Lithograph printed to two sheets, joined. Some areas of scuffing to verso; one neatly mended tear.
References
No examples in OCLC.