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This scarce and colorful pictorial vintage map of San Francisco features the city as ‘Oz by the Bay’.
The map is an intricate and colorful pictorial representation of San Francisco, interweaving the city's landmarks and businesses with the whimsical theme of L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Created in 1989 by illustrator Robert Zell-Breier, it portrays the city through a lens of fantasy and diversity, featuring the likenesses of the novel's characters — The Scarecrow, The Lion, The Tinman, and The Good Witch — in its corners, with Dorothy and Toto on the Yellow Brick Road near the title.
Zell-Breier's map offers a rich tapestry of local establishments, many of which cater to or support the LGBT+ community, reflecting San Francisco's reputation as a haven for such inclusivity. Noteworthy landmarks and areas such as Haight-Ashbury, known for its historical significance in the 1960s counterculture movement, and the Castro district, a well-known gay neighborhood.
The map's layout, with its emphasis on colorful advertisements and prominent pro-LGBT businesses such as Maud’s bar — self-styled as the oldest bar for women in the world — reflects the city's relaxed attitudes towards lifestyle and identity during the late 1980s. Moreover, the presence of the LGBT rainbow flag alongside the San Francisco Flag below the map's title reinforces this message of acceptance and pride.
While the map serves as a celebration of San Francisco's cultural fabric, it also functions as a commercial directory, highlighting various businesses from restaurants to custom framing shops, and even a Harley Davidson motorcycle outlet.
Rarity
The map is rare on the market. This is the first example we have offered for sale (1992-2024).
OCLC locates a single example.
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