Antique Map of Italy Before Unification, 1858

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This is an original antique map of italy, a steel engraving colored by hand, titled "italy general map including sicily, … Read more This is an original antique map of italy, a steel engraving colored by hand, titled "italy general map including sicily, malta sardinia, corsica &c." it covers the peninsula from switzerland and the alps to sicily and malta, with corsica and sardinia, the dalmatian coast across the adriatic, and the coast of africa around tunis. The borders of the italian states are drawn in outline color, with a pale blue wash along the coasts. Below the title the plate reads "published under the superintendence of the society for the diffusion of useful knowledge." and gives the abbreviations "c. Cape, i. Island, l. Lake, m. Mount, p. Port, pt. Point, r. River". Three scales run up the right margin: "french leagues, 25 = one degree", "italian miles, 60 = one degree" and "english miles, 69 = one degree". The lower border is lettered "longitude east 12 of greenwich". Below the border are the imprint "london, edward stanford 6 charing cross." and, at right, "engraved by j & c. Walker.", with the plate number "11." outside the lower right corner. The plate comes from the harrow atlas of modern geography, published in london in 1858 by edward stanford of 6 charing cross and sold at harrow by crossley and clarke, booksellers to harrow school. Its maps were selected from those of the society for the diffusion of useful knowledge, founded in london in 1826, which issued its series of maps in parts from 1829 until the society was wound up in 1848. Edward stanford later issued the maps under his own imprint, as this sheet shows. The map shows italy before unification: the sardinian states with savoy and piedmont, lombardy and the venetian lands, parma, modena, lucca, tuscany, the states of the church around rome, and naples with sicily are each drawn separately. Railway lines appear in the north around milan, turin and venice. The separately colored states give a clear picture of the divided peninsula. Condition: light handling wear to the top left corner; minor nicks along the left and right edges. Light, uneven toning, slightly darker toward the edges. A few small foxing spots in the margin. A few small light flecks in the printed area. A center fold, as issued. This is an original antique map, not a modern reproduction. This item is sold unframed. Any framed or interior images are shown for presentation and inspiration only, unless the listing explicitly states that the item is sold framed. See less