Humboldts autographed copy of the CruzCano map of South AmericaThe A - PDF document

1 Humboldt’s autographed copy of the Cruz-
Humboldt’s autographed copy of the Cruz-Cano map of South AmericaThe AGS Library is open Mondays through Fridays from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. It is located on the third floor of the east wing of the Golda Meir Library on the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee campus, at 2311 E. Hartford Avenue, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Parking is usually available in the UWM Union parking structure which is entered on Kenwood Blvd at Prospect Ave. The Library is open to the general public; however, most materials are non-circulating. A large format photo copier is available for public use. Staff members are available to discuss other photographic options should they be required. Requests for information may be made by telephone or fax, or by mail or e-mail to the addresses below. Please note that the use of rare material is governed by special procedures. University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee P.O. Box 399 (800) 558-8993 FAX: (414) 229-3624 E-mail: agsl@uwm.edu Web site: http://www.uwm.edu/Libraries/AGSL/index.html Preserved in The American Geographical Society Library UWM Libraries University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee he map of South America, or , by Juan de la Cruz Cano y Olmedilla, is one of the great geographic compilations of the eighteenth century and is sometimes compared to the similarly large scale map of North America by John Mitchell. Although presently acknowledged for its essential accuracy, the map had for a long time fallen victim to negative propaganda on the part of the Spanish authorities who suppressed the map and claimed to have destroyed the plates. The cause of this propaganda seems to be what the Spanish considered information on the map unfavorable to their boundary negotiations with Portugal over Brazil at the time. The map was officially rehabilitated by the Spanish government in 1802 and was used in boundary negotiations throughout the nineteenth century. The copy of the map held in the AGS Library was acquired in 1869 as one of 761 “rare from the antiquarian book dealer Henry Stevens, who purchased the entire Humboldt library following the great scientist’s death in 1859. Although there was a proposal from within the Society to acquire the entire library in 1863, this did not hap

2 pen, and in June 1865, most of Humboldt’
pen, and in June 1865, most of Humboldt’s library was The Humboldt copy of the Cruz Cano map, an example of the 3rd edition of the work, cannot be precisely dated, but is thought to have been issued after July 1776. Humboldt’s acquisition of the map occurred sometime between 1804 and 1813, as it was in 1804 that the 20-franc gold piece, the , the currency used in its purchase, appeared; and it was in 1813 that Humboldt referred to the map as being in his possession in the second volume of his In this work, Humboldt states “the original edition, which I possess is especially e copperplates, as commonly believed, have been broken by order of a colonial minister who feared that the map was not very correct. I can affirm that it only merits this reproach for a small number of points.” The AGSL copy of the map is made especially valuable since it contains Humboldt’s signature and inscription in the upper left Alexander von Humboldt (1769-1859) who has been called the last truly universal genius, made substantial contributions to the fields of anthropology, astronomy, botany, geography, geology, geophysics, meteorology, oceanography, physiology and zoology, and was an explorer and traveler as well as a prolific writer. He visited the United States in 1804 and became a lifelong friend of Thomas Jefferson. He was granted honorary membership in nine American learned societies, including the AGS in 1856, and gave his name to at least 24 features. Al. Humboldt, the original of La Cruz [The Cruz Cano Map] of which the Plates have been destroyed in Madrid (purchased in Paris 15 Napoleons). HuboŽdt was one of tŠose wonders of tŠe worŽd, Ž‹e Ar‹stotŽe, Ž‹e JuŽ‹us Cæsar, Ž‹e tŠe Ad‹rabŽe Cr‹cŠton, wŠo appear froÂ t‹e to t‹e, as ‹f to sŠow us tŠe poss‹b‹Ž‹t‹es of tŠe Šuan ‹nd, tŠe force and tŠe range of tŠe facuŽt‹es, –a un‹versaŽÂ an. –RaŽpŠÂ WaŽdo Eerson ሺ1ͺ6ͻሻÂ