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Fine example of the final state of Du Val's scarce map of America.
The present example is from the collection of Glen McLaughlin, whose collection is described in the Mapping of California as an Island. A letter certifying the provenance is available on request.
Du Val's map of America was first issued in 1655, in the second edition of his Cartes Geographiques. Between 1655 and 1687, the map went through at least 12 recorded examples. Both the 1st and 2nd states of the map are essentially "incomplete" states of the map, distinguishable by the lack of nomenclature in California, the Great Lakes and elsewhere. For the first time in this 1664 edition of the map, Du Val adds significant detail to the map, including the many place names in California and off its coast, the names of the 5 Great Lakes, the names of the Oceans (Mer de Californie, Mer de Canada, etc.), place names in Texas and along the Gulf Coast, and the names of a number of East Coast cities, including Charlesfort, Jamestown, London, Bas (Boston?), and Christina. A number of additional Indian Tribes are also named. There are also extensive notes and annotations throughout the present map which are not included in the earlier state.
A fine example of the final edition of Du Val's excellent map of America, with the Val Fille address in the title cartouche and the date of 1684.
Pierre Duval (1618-1683) was a French geographer, cartographer, and publisher who worked in Abbeville and Paris during the seventeenth century. He was born in the former city, in northeast France, before moving to Paris. Duval was the nephew of the famous cartographer Nicolas Sanson, from whom he learned the mapmaker's art and skills. Both men worked at the royal court, having followed the royal request for artists to relocate to Paris. In addition to numerous maps and atlases, Du Val's opus also includes geography texts. He held the title of geographe ordinaire du roi from 1650 and died in 1683, when his wife and daughters took over his business.
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