Andrew Bell; 1726 - 1809.
Together with the like of Robert Burns, James Watt, Walter
Scott, Adam Smith and a few others, this Edinburgh enterprising
resident was a typical product of the "Scottish enlightenment"
age.
A metal engraver by trade, he also contributed to publications
such as the Scots Magazine for which he produced maps which
were not highly regarded at that time.
But his call to fame took place in 1768 when he teamed up
with printer Collin MacFarquhar and editor William Smellie
to produce the Encyclopaedia Britannica (only three volumes
thick for its first edition).
An accurate map of Cuba, and the adjacent
islands.
A plan of the city and harbour of Havanna capital of the island
of Cuba.
This extremely rare double map was published in 1762 for
the September monthly issue of 'The Scots Magazine".
No text on verso.
The map is still bound in the complete original Scots Magazine
of 1762. Its asked price includes the entire magazine.
The Cuba map (9 1/2" X 6 13/16") uses the standard delineation
of the time.
Notice that there are only two towns of importance on the
island: Santiago (St Jago), and La Havana (Havanna, or St
Christophers). When founded on the south coast (at present
day Surgidero de Batabano) in 1515, the settlement was named
San Cristobal de la Habana, which name it kept when the little
colony was moved in 1519 on the northern coast, where it stands
today.
Notice also the archipelago delineation for southern Florida.
The La Havana map (4 1/2" X 7 1/16") uses the accepted coastal
delineation first provided by Antoine Jean de Laval in 1728.
It shows a wealth of information on the city important buildings
and on its defenses: forts, bastions, number of guns, walls..
All of interest to the readers who had just learned of its
surrendering to english forces the month before.
The Scots Magazine; 1762.
Monthly magazines of the time were often bound to form "yearlies",
with the twelve regular issues of the year, plus a slew of
appendices and indexes for births, marriages, deaths, and
also lists of new books, essays, poetry and historical facts.
With over 700 pages, the present item is complete. It contains
also a few engraved plates (such as the portrait of Frederick
III, king of Prussia) and two other maps by A Bell: The West
Indies and the Caribbean islands.
  
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