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This is Gerard and Leonard Valk's edition of the two-sheet nautical map of the Caspian Sea titled Marine Chart of the Caspian Sea, Surveyed by Order of Her Imperial Majesty by Mr. Carl Vanverden in 1719, 1720, and 1721, and Reduced to the Meridian of Paris.

The map is a reduced 2-sheet version of a significant cartographic work commissioned under the authority of the Russian czar and reflects early 18th-century hydrographic surveys of the Caspian Sea. Carl Van Verden and Ivan Soimonov, under the direction of Peter the Great, conducted surveys of the Caspian Sea from 1719 to 1721, focusing on hydrography and coastal geography. These surveys were later compiled into a nautical chart, reduced to the Paris meridian, and engraved for publication. Their work represents one of the earliest systematic surveys of the Caspian Sea. The map provides a detailed rendering of the sea, its coastal features, and surrounding regions, with particular attention to harbors, river mouths, and significant settlements such as Astrakhan.

This map includes eight inset maps detailing harbors and coastal features:

1. Severnoi Oustie Reïke Koura (Northern Mouth of the Kura River) – Details the delta and its connection to the Caspian Sea.
2. Emboûchure Septentrionale de la Rivière de Koura (Northern Mouth of the Kura River) – A close-up depiction of the northern branch of the Kura River.
3. Rade d'Anscharon (Anchorage of Anzali) – Illustrates the anchorage point and coastline near Anzali, a key harbor.
4. Golfe de Baka (Bay of Baku) – Shows the region of modern-day Baku, with detailed soundings and coastal features.
5. Emboûchure de la Rivière de Sendoura (Mouth of the Sendoura River) – Displays the river's mouth, with surrounding topographical features.
6. Emboûchure de la Rivière de Krudosel (Mouth of the Krudosel River) – Represents the mouth of another river emptying into the Caspian Sea.
7. Zalif Sinsinksoï (Sininskiy Bay) – Highlights a bay with detailed bathymetric soundings.
8. Zalif Astrabatskiy (Astrabad Gulf) – Shows Astrabad (now Gorgan) Bay and its surroundings, a notable area for trade and navigation.

At the bottom of the map is a panoramic city view of Astrakhan, an important Russian port city at the mouth of the Volga River. The illustration captures the city's architectural skyline from the Volga, including prominent buildings, towers, and defensive structures, as well as its bustling maritime activity. 

The Avertissement (Warning) explains the measurement units and conventions used on the map:

• The soundings marked on this chart, whether in fathoms or feet, are based on the Dutch measurement system.
• Dutch fathoms are shorter by five lines than those used in Paris.
• The soundings are marked in fathoms on the chart, except in the area near the mouths of the Volga, where they are marked in feet.
• In contrast, on the detailed plans along the sides of the map, the soundings are marked in feet, except for the Gulf of Baku, where they are indicated in fathoms.
• The variations of the compass needle are noted according to observations made in 1719, 1720, and 1721.