New Amsterdam to Metropolis – Important Maps of New York City 1548 – 1964 at Martayan Lan
- by Bruce E. McKinney
Martayan Lan, the New York City rare book and map dealer and ABAA member, has announced the opening of an exhibition of New York maps issued over the past four hundred years. The event now underway, will continue to May 31st, 2019 at the firm’s headquarters in the Heron Tower at 70 East 55th Street.
The exhibition opens with a cartographic glimpse of New York, Tierra Nueva, that was printed in Venice in 1548. Next is a map of Norumbega Et Virginia by Wytfliet in 1597. Norumbega you ask? If you visit this exhibition you are there. Third is a Blaeu map of Nova Belgica Et Anglia Nova dated 1635 that shows Manhattan as a triangle. For those approaching New York by boat Martayan Lan’s next offer is “The first printed sea chart of New England and New Netherlands.” The work of R. Dudley and printed in Florence in the mid-17th century, this is a major rarity.
The fifth example is by Danckerts and Visscher. It’s Novi Belgi Novaeque Angiae, dated circa 1690, in original color. Next [No. 6] is Lotter and Jansson-Visscher’s Recens Edita totius Novi Belgii. It was printed at Augsburg, circa 1757 and adds increasing detail to maps of New York and its environs. At No. 7, Van Keulen’s map reflects the increasing need for accurate sea charts, aiding navigation by clarifying distances and landmarks.
No. 8 is a gem; “A South West View of the City of New York.” This image gives us the artist’s understanding of what New York City looked like circa 1730. As would inevitably happen, after discovery, exploration and then habitation, a plan for the New York settlement would be needed and No. 9 is the second iteration of such a plan. No. 10, by Montresor, is also a plan of the city. It’s dated 1775 when the British were first encountering colonial resistance.
No. 11 is Faden’s 1776 plan of New York Island and surrounding areas, with details of an early Revolutionary War battle at Woody Heights on Long Island. It’s a good thing that one battle does not necessarily make a war because, if it had, we in America, would be British subjects still.
No. 12 is De Barres’ 1777 “Sketch of the Operations of his Majesty’s Fleet and Army…” which was part of the navigational atlas used by the British during the war.
No. 13 begins to show us a New York City we can recognize. It’s a rejected first plan [1807] for the City’s streets. No. 14 is Randel’s 1821 blueprint [on silk] of a map of New York. Maps on cloth are a very special niche. No. 15 is a map reflecting the gathering detail of New York. It’s by Poppleton and Hooker and, as was No. 14, on silk.
No. 16 is Burr’s 1839 map of the city of New York. No. 17 is a panorama of Manhattan that dates to 1854. No. 18 is the work of Magnus and dated 1852 that shows in detail the development of New York, Brooklyn and Williamsburg. No. 19 is Bartlett’s illustrated map of New York City [1870]. It shows some buildings and provides details that can otherwise be difficult to find.
No 20 is Viele’s Sanitary & Topological Map of the City and Island of New York. It dates to 1865 and shows the gathering need to understand the flow of water under Manhattan. No. 21 is another bird’s eye view. This one is the work of Heine and Dopler in 1851. It will attract attention.
No. 22 is Hyde & Co.’s [Brooklyn, 1898] Map of the City of New York. It is the first to reflect New York City as the consolidation of the five boroughs. No. 23 is the Wanamaker Vest Pocket Subway Guide. Dated 1904, it shows the nascent subway system.
No set of New York maps would be complete without something from Rand McNally. This version, No. 24,, dated 1909, captures the subway routes in high detail. And now, the last example. It’s by Bollman and dated 1963. It portrays New York in 3-D.
All in all, a wonderful tour of the city that is now world renowned.
Sotheby’s Shelf Life: Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper from the Library of Stanley J. Seeger and Christopher Cone 25 June – July 7
Sotheby’s, July 7: Ludwig van Beethoven. Autograph sketches for the overture "Die Weihe des Hauses", op.124, [1822], UNPUBLISHED. £150,000 to £200,000.
Sotheby’s, July 7: Jane Austen. Pride and Prejudice, 1813, first edition, 3 volumes, contemporary half calf. £50,000 to £70,000.
Sotheby’s, July 7: Walt Whitman. Leaves of Grass, Brooklyn, 1855, first edition, first issue, original green cloth, the Doheny copy. £50,000 to £70,000.
Sotheby’s, July 7: Binding—Sangorski & Sutcliffe—Omar Khayyam. Rubaiyat, London, 1872, third edition, in a magnificent jewelled Peacock binding. £15,000 to £20,000.
Sotheby’s, July 7: George Eliot. Middlemarch, Edinburgh and London, 1871, first edition in the original parts. £20,000 to £30,000.
Forum Auctions The Private Library: Fine Printing & Private Press books, the collection of the late David Chambers July 9, 2026
Forum, July 9: Hassall (Joan) A large collection of over 300 original woodblocks of engravings for various books, v.d., with Hassall's engraver's glass water-globe (Qty) - Est. £10,000-15,000
Forum, July 9: Eragny Press.- [Bradley (Katherine Harris) & Edith Emma Cooper], "Michael Field." Whym Chow, Flame of Love, one of only 27 copies, inscribed by Bradley, the rarest book from the press, 1914. - Est. £3,000-4,000
Forum, July 9: [Moore (Thomas Sturge)] [Wood Engravings], 71 wood-engravings printed by David Chambers from the original blocks, the only set on Japanese Hosho paper, from an edition of 5 sets, [1970]. - Est. £3,000-4,000
Forum Auctions The Private Library: Fine Printing & Private Press books, the collection of the late David Chambers July 9, 2026
Forum, July 9: La Fontaine (Jean de) Contes et Nouvelles en vers, 2 vol., engraved plates after Eisen, fine early 19th century blue morocco, gilt, by Bradel l'ainé, Amsterdam [Paris], 1762. - Est. £2,000-3,000
Forum, July 9: Erotica.- Prostitution.- Pretty Women of Paris (The); Their Names and Addresses, Qualities and Faults..., [Paris], privately printed at the Press of the Prefecture de Police, 1883. - Est. £3,000-4,000
Forum, July 9: Vale Press.- Ricketts (Charles) & Lucien Pissarro. De la Typographie et de l'Harmonie de la Page Imprimée…, [one of 216 copies], bound in dark blue morocco tooled in gilt, by Sarah T.Prideaux, 1898. - Est. £1,000-1,500
Forum Auctions The Private Library: Fine Printing & Private Press books, the collection of the late David Chambers July 9, 2026
Forum, July 9: Martin (John) Illustrations of the Bible, complete set of 20 mezzotints, good impressions, rarely found in early states, [c.1831-1835]. - Est. £1,000-1,500
Forum, July 9: Golden Cockerel Press.- Four Gospels of the Lord Jesus Christ (The), one of 500 copies, Mary Gill's copy, Waltham St. Lawrence, 1931 with a signed proof of engraving on japon numbered 10/10 (2) - Est. £5,000-7,000
Forum, July 9: Boccaccio (Giovanni) The Decameron, 3 vol., vol.1 extra-illustrated by John Buckland Wright with c.150 erotic original drawings in pen & ink and pencil, 1886 [extra-illustrated c.1940]. - Est. £10,000-15,000
Forum Auctions The Private Library: Fine Printing & Private Press books, the collection of the late David Chambers July 9, 2026
Forum, July 9: Cox (Morris) Collection of Gogmagog Press Books, 35 vol., rare complete collection of printed books issued by the press, limited editions, most signed by Cox, 1957-83. - Est. £10,000-15,000
Forum, July 9: Wynkyn de Worde.- [Terentius Afer (Publius)] [Comedie...], [Paris, Josse Badius: sold in London by Wynkyn de Worde, & others], [15 July 1504]. - Est. £4,000-6,000
Forum, July 9: Mosley (James) Ornamented Types. Twenty-Three Alphabets from the Foundry of Louis John Pouchée, 2 vol., one of 10 copies for presentation, from an edition of 210, 1992-93. - Est. £1,000-2,000
Forum Auctions The 10th Anniversary Sale Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper July 16, 2026
Forum, July 16: Inundation papyrus. P.Michael 4, the ‘Inundation papyrus’, a geographical account of the Nile near Canopus, in Greek, remains of two columns from a manuscript scroll on papyrus, Egypt, second century CE. £12,000-18,000
Forum, July 16: Book of Hours, use of Sarum, manuscript on vellum, 6 full-page miniatures, with famous Middle English inscriptions, Southern Netherlands for the English market, [c.1430]. £30,000-50,000
Forum, July 16: Qu'ran, Arabic manuscript on burnished, stencilled, and gold-flecked paper, 447ff., Sultanate Gujarat, Ahmadabad, [after 1411 but no later than 1442]. £15,000-20,000
Forum Auctions The 10th Anniversary Sale Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper July 16, 2026
Forum, July 16: Turner (William). A New boke of the natures and properties of all wines that are commonly vsed here in England, rare first edition of the first English book on wine, By William Seres, 1568. £20,000-£30,000
Forum, July 16: Spenser (Edmund). The Faerie Queene. first edition, Printed [by John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, 1590. £30,000-40,000
Forum, July 16: Shakespeare (William). The Comedie of Errors, extracted from the first folio, Isaac Jaggard and Edward Blount, 1623. £15,000-20,000
Forum Auctions The 10th Anniversary Sale Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper July 16, 2026
Forum, July 16: Fleming (Ian). Casino Royale, first edition, signed presentation inscription from the author, 1953. £40,000-60,000
Forum, July 16: d'Agoty (Jacques-Fabien Gautier). Anatomie de la Tête, first edition, Paris, chez le Sieur Gautier, 1748. £10,000-15,000
Forum, July 16: Martial Arts.- Lee (Bruce). 'Praying Mantis style' Kung Fu book, containing numerous annotations, diagrams and graphs in Bruce Lee's hand, c. 1960. £50,000-70,000
Forum Auctions The 10th Anniversary Sale Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper July 16, 2026
Forum, July 16: Warre (Capt. Henry James). Sketches in North America and the Oregon Territory, first edition, rare hand-coloured issue, 1848. £30,000-40,000
Forum, July 16: Norie (John William). The Marine Atlas, or Seaman's Complete Pilot for all the principal places in the known world..., 1826. £30,000-50,000
Forum, July 16: Mao Tse-tung.- Kim Il-sung.-[Note book for visitors from China to Korea], signed by Mao and Kim, [Beijing, 1954]. £10,000-15,000
