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Beautiful hand-painted map of the mythical "presque-isle of perfection," a solitary landmass connected to the "continent of the world" by the "isthmus of charity."
This map forms an unusually intricate and highly attractive example of this style of allegorical cartography, which flourished at the end of the 18th and start of the 19th centuries in continental Europe. These allegorical maps had moralistic undertones that showed, through geographical relations, moral highs and lows and how they could be achieved or avoided.
This “presque-ile” is surrounded by the seas of self-caution and divine love, and encompasses the territories of charity, caution, and cordiality. Cities include fidelity, strength of spirit, and discretion. The rivers and mountains of the region are similarly named. Across the Isthmuth of Charity, the "worldly continent" possesses the cities of inequality, avarice, betrayals, and jealousy.
To the left of the map is a rendition of a sinking ship with a lone woman holding on to a mast, perhaps a warning to those who don't achieve perfection.
The map includes an "Allegorical Description" that describes the presque-isle and its constituents in detail.
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