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Scarce map depicting various cartographic projection techniques.

This 1860 map, titled Tableau des Principales Projections Usitées pour la Construction des Cartes Géographiques, was created by the French cartographer and geographer Charles Garnier. The map serves as an educational and comparative chart of various map projections used for geographic representation, providing a concise overview of the principal methods employed by geographers from the time of Ptolemy to Garnier’s contemporaries.

The chart is meticulously divided into sections, each illustrating a different type of projection with accompanying explanatory text. The projections are depicted as both globes and flattened maps, providing a clear visual contrast between how each projection translates the three-dimensional Earth onto a two-dimensional surface. Each projection includes a numbered label, which corresponds to detailed descriptions at the bottom of the chart.

Featured Projections:

1. Projection Globulaire (No. 1): A basic equidistant projection dividing the globe's circumference and diameters into equal parts, allowing for straightforward, if not perfectly accurate, mapping of global extents.

2. Projection de La Hire (No. 2): Named after the French mathematician Philippe de La Hire, this projection aims to minimize distortion by approximating equal surface areas.

3. Projection Polaire (No. 3): A polar projection that centers the view on one of the poles, typically used for illustrating Arctic or Antarctic regions.

4. Projection Orthographique (No. 4): This projection views the Earth from an infinite distance, creating a perspective that closely resembles a photograph of the globe.

5. Projection Stéréographique (No. 5): A projection that accurately preserves angles, making it useful for navigational purposes. This projection presents the globe as if viewed from a point on its surface opposite to the tangent plane.

6. Projection Homalographique (No. 6): Attributed to B. A. Tissot, this projection is noted for maintaining equal areas, making it suitable for comparative studies of geographic regions.

7. Projection Conique (No. 7): A conical projection useful for mapping mid-latitude regions, which aligns the cone's surface to the globe at a specific latitude.

8. Projection de Flamsteed (No. 8): Also known as the "Equal Area" or "Sinusoidal" projection, developed by the English astronomer John Flamsteed, which preserves areas across the map while distorting shapes, particularly at the edges.

9. Projection de Flamsteed Modifiée par Bonne (No. 9): A modification of Flamsteed’s projection by Rigobert Bonne, aimed at further reducing distortions by using concentric circles instead of straight lines to represent parallels.

10. Projection de Mercator (No. 10): The well-known cylindrical projection developed by Gerardus Mercator, designed primarily for navigation due to its ability to represent lines of constant bearing as straight lines, despite significant distortion of size, especially near the poles.

This chart serves as both an educational tool and a reference for cartographers, geographers, and students, offering a comparative look at the strengths and weaknesses of various projection methods. Garnier’s inclusion of explanatory text provides historical context and technical insight into each projection’s application, emphasizing the practical considerations that influence the choice of projection in mapmaking. 

By summarizing the principal projections used in the creation of geographic maps, Garnier’s work reflects the broader 19th-century efforts to standardize and rationalize the representation of the Earth's surface. It underscores the evolution of cartographic science, illustrating the trade-offs between accuracy, scale, and usability that mapmakers have navigated over centuries. The chart is an invaluable resource for understanding the complexities of geographic representation and the technical advancements that have shaped the field of cartography.