Ode To Oceanography: An Antique Nautical Chart Of The Gulf Of Venice, Italy

Ode To Oceanography: An Antique Nautical Chart Of The Gulf Of Venice, Italy

This article is the sixth instalment in the Ode To Oceanography Series. This series will publish on the 15th of every month, until we run out of antique nautical maps to analyze, though that will not be for many decades. Once that happens, we will keep the series running, but we will change the article format. In these articles, will take an antique nautical map & analyze it in its entirety. These maps will not strictly be on open oceanic waters, they may be on rivers or occasionally, bays. We will also discuss the methods that may have been used to make the map, considering the time period, & the country of origin. These maps will come from a variety of sources, though they will mainly come from Maps Of Antiquity, a wonderful New England map shop. These maps will come from varying time periods, & will not be in any particular historical order. Today’s Map up for analysis, is an antique nautical chart of the Gulf of Venice. The gulf of Venice is approximately 75 miles wide, & is approximately 125 feet deep on average. The map is in wonderful condition, apart from some curling in the upper side of the map. In this article we will discuss the map itself & the translation of certain sections of the map, & a surface level analysis on this antique nautical map. With that being said, let us delve into the Venetian Gulf.

The Map Itself

This map is in french. The front emblem says “Carte Reduite De Golfe de Venise”, which translates to “Reduced Map Of The Gulf Of Venice”. This map is specifically off the gulf, & all islands or other land areas are left off the map.

A Surface Level Analysis Of The Map

This map was made in the year 1820, by Captain Gauttier. The map was found by Maps Of Antiquity, & the original owner of the map is unknown. This map was most likely made in france, due to the map being in french. This map has no rapids, or topographical features outlined on the map. Additionally, there are no marine creature areas outlined on the map. The map is extremely proportionally accurate. As far as we are aware the map is not a part of a specific collection, nor does it have a particular name. This map remains uncoloured, most likely for simplicity the map is not centered on any country, island, or light house. It was also not made or used for any militaristic purposes. Due to the time that the map was made, it is hard to say exactly how it was made. In the year 1820, lithography began becoming commercially popular, which makes the chances of it being made by they method more likely. Since we do not know what country this map was made in, we do not know if lithography had become commercially popular in that area yet. Lithography is still the most likely option, but by a slimmer margin. The first technique that will be discussed is the bronze slab technique. In this technique, there are 5 jobs, the mapmaker, the engraver, the printer, the papermaker, & the colourist. The first step in this process is that the mapmaker will go out & make a hand-drawn map of the area where the map will encompass. Effectively, the mapmaker is the informant who makes the first copy. After this, the engraver will create a design of the map in reverse on a metal, usually copper, surface. Usually there would only be 1-2 plates used, however it differs depending on the size of the map. After the copper plate is made, the printer will heat the copper panel, & then proceed to lather it with ink. They will then wipe the copper panel down to the point where ink is only on the grooves of the panel. Then after this, the printer will press damp paper onto the ink, & hang it up to dry. To conclude, the colourist will touch up the map & decorate it by adding in details, such as shorelines & shoals. In the second method, the artist will draw directly onto a printing surface, such as zinc, or copper, until they are satisfied with the drawing. After this, the surface will be covered with a chemical etch, which will bond it to the surface. With this process, the blank areas will attract moisture to the plate & repel the lithographic ink, while the areas that are drawn on will hold the ink. Water is then wiped onto the unpainted areas to help prevent the ink from deviating. After the map wanted is inked, the paper is laid over it & covered with a tympan, & the tympan is pressed down. Finally, these materials pass through the scraper bar of the litho press. Afterwards, an exact copy of whatever was supposed to be printed is revealed.

Directories / Credits

All credit for this map analyzed today goes to Maps Of Antiquity, a wonderful New England map shop. To purchase this map, any other maps, or any other cartographic objects, please visit mapsofantiquity.com. To be clear, this is not an advertisement for Maps Of Antiquity, as we do not have a partnership with them

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