Ode To Oceanography: An Antique Nautical Map Of Cape Cod
This article is the seventh installment 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 map of Cape Cod, & Provincetown. Cape Cod Bay is approximately 604 square miles, though the map does not cover the entire bay. All around, the map is in marvelous condition. There is no curling damage, or any damage at all really. 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 Beautiful, Cape Cod Bay.
The Map Itself
Since the map is in English, there is no need to translate it.
A Surface Level Analysis Of The Map
This map was made in the year 1836, by the United States Topographical Engineers. This map was found by Maps Of Antiquity, & where they originally found it is unknown. This map does not have any marien creature zones outlined on it. Though it is not labelled, the map has Herring Cove Beach displayed on it near the curl of the cape. The map is not very accurate about the lakes near Provincetown, but the proportions of the ocean are very accurate. We suspect that this map was a part of a specific collection, though we cannot say for certain. This map does not have a specific name. It does not have any coves labelled on it, but the coves are there, just unlabelled. The map has many lakes outlined quite prominently, as Provincetown was built near at least 17 lakes. The map is uncoloured, most likely for simplicity of the map. It is unclear whether or not this map was used for militaristic purposes, but it was made for such purposes. The map is primarily centered on Provincetown, not any lighthouses along the coast. Since the map was made in 1836, it is almost guaranteed that it was made using lithography. Especially since it was made by the United States Topographical Engineering Corps, the chances of it being made with an advanced for the time technique were higher. In the lithographic 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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