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Description

The Kingdom of Sardinia & Mont Blanc

Decorative large format 18th Century map of Northwestern Italy and the region south of Lake Geneva, with a large inset of Sardinia and of the Mont Blanc area (including Glacier information) by one of England's leading map publishing firms of the late 18th Century.

The map is colored by Duchy's and shows the regions controlled by the King of Sardinia at the end of the 18th Century, centered on Turin.

The map includes a fine depiction of the major roads, towns, rivers, mountains and other topographical features. The inset gives the heights of the mountains in the Mont Blanc Region.

Condition Description
Original hand-color. Small crack at the right edge of the central horizontal fold. Small toning around the centerfold.
Laurie & Whittle Biography

Robert Laurie (ca. 1755-1836) and James Whittle (1757-1818) formed their Fleet Street, London-based firm upon the 1794 death of their employer Robert Sayer, himself one of the dominant print and mapmakers of the last half of the 18th century.

Laurie & Whittle started managing Sayer's business as early as 1787. They took over all managerial duties when Sayer's health flagged in 1792, and they changed the imprint in 1794 upon his death. Sayer left the two a 21-year lease on the shop (at £100 a year) and on Sayer's Bolt Court premises, as well as an option to acquire stock and equipment at a preferential price of £5,000 payable over three years.

Robert Laurie retired from the firm in 1812, and his role was assumed by his son, Richard Holmes Laurie (1777-1858). The younger Laurie worked with James Whittle until the latter died in 1818. After R. H. Laurie died in 1858, Alexander George Findlay, FRGS (1812-1875) purchased the firm from his daughters. The firm continues today under another name, specializing in yachting charts.

Laurie & Whittle were prolific print and map publishers, and throughout their careers, they produced numerous very important and rare works. They carried on Robert Sayer's atlas business and were responsible for editions of The Complete East-India Pilot and The American Atlas.