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How to make a 'mysterious old map'

• August 20 [date seen] 'Old Map Tutorial' (Directory Aviva. Photoshop Tutorials. Learn About Using Adobe Photoshop).
        "Here’s a great way of taking a simple black and white drawing and converting it into a mysterious, old map, lost for hundreds of years. For the ingredients you need to look on the net for a nice, black and white drawing or diagram." There are obvious dangers in broadcasting 'how to' pages about creating map fakes. However, this exercise seems to be intended for web presentation alone. That said, the result (which looks as if it has suffered from the worst kind of 1860s brittle paper damage) is reminiscent of some ghastly productions that are peddled in the real world.

Research into an ethnographic map of Hungary, possibly used in the 1919 treaty negotiations


• August 18. 'Historic Map of Hungary in the Ball State University Libraries' (on the Ball State University Geospatial Resources and Map Collection blog).
        An interesting post, that needs to be read in its entirety. It concerns a single map acquired from the Library of Congress through the participation of the retired map librarian, Paul W. Stout, who participated in 'six of the Library of Congress Geography and Map Division Special Summer projects - each lasting six weeks - between 1977 and 1996 ... The Library of Congress Geography and Map Division Special Summer Project was developed in 1951 to employ the use of interns to process the backlog of maps that the Division received from federal libraries and government mapping agencies after World War II. Ball State University Libraries was one of the many institutions to sponsor a participant in the program over the years. In exchange for their work, participants were able to select duplicate maps and atlases from the Library’s stock and send them back to their sponsoring libraries.'
       'During a four-hour selection period in the 1983 Special Summer Project, Stout discovered two maps he suspected were not duplicates. The maps were of the Hungarian portion of the Austrian-Hungarian Empire dated 1919. One of the maps had specific notations indicating it had been used at the Peace Conference in Versailles, France following World War I. Stout remembers reading "American Commission to Negotiate Peace" stamped on the map. (The Treaty of Trianon was organized as part of the Peace Conference at Versailles in order to determine the borders of Hungary and was signed in June of 1920, so the American delegation may have used these maps as a resource for the peace negotiations).' One of the maps was annotated; the unannotated example was handed to Stout. 'Stout recalled both maps having identical ownership stamps - first belonging to the U.S. State Department in 1919 then transferred to the Central Intelligence Agency in 1949. The map measures over six feet by almost ten feet in size [183 x 305 cm]. The title of the Ball State map is Ethnographical Map of Hungary - Colonization and Population by S. Batky and Ch. Kogutowicz dated 1919. The map states "designed by order of the Foreign Ministry of the Hungarian Republic." The map shows the areas where ethnic Hungarians were predominant. This information was one of the criteria for the negotiations used by the Americans at the treaty. Based on circumstantial evidence, Stout believes this map was used by the American Delegation to Negotiate Peace in preparation for the determination of Hungarian territory ... The map of Hungary will be on display in the GRMC and is available for historical research and as a learning resource.'

New collaborative map image site announced


• August 18. < http://www.lib.unc.edu/blogs/ncm/index.php/2008/08/18/north-carolina-maps/ > 'North Carolina Maps' (North Carolina Miscellany blog).
        'I’m excited to announce the release of the beta site for North Carolina Maps, the historic map digitization project by the North Carolina State Archives, UNC-Chapel Hill University Library, and Outer Banks History Center. The site currently includes over 750 maps, primarily from the State Archives and the North Carolina Collection. Maps from the Outer Banks History Center will be added in the fall. There is an impressive variety of maps on the site, including many of the earliest maps of North Carolina, state highway maps, Coast and Geodetic Survey maps, and - my personal favorite - soil survey maps. North Carolina Maps also includes at least one map for each of North Carolina’s 100 counties.
        'New maps and features will be added to the site on a regular basis over the next two years.' [See the original post for all the separate links; it is good to note the very high quality of the enlargeable scans].

New book on Cook's exploration of the north-west coast of America


• August 16. < http://www.adn.com/life/story/496284.html > 'Cook's tour of Alaska. New book details explorer's achievements in North Pacific' (by Mike Dunham in the Anchorage Daily News).
        An interview with 'Anchorage attorney and former Assemblyman James Barnett' who talks about his recent book, Captain Cook in Alaska and the North Pacific. Barnett has spent years researching the voyages of Cook and his successors along North America's west coast. "Of the many books and articles about Cook, there is scant attention to the North Pacific outside of Hawaii. It is an afterthought, and yet finding the Northwest Passage was the purpose of the third voyage. My book is the first, to my knowledge, to be devoted to Alaska and the North Pacific coast of America, and also provides details about later voyages in the area."

Miniature roll-on maps for the 1920s UK motorist


• August 15. < http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1045114/The-1920s-satnav---weird-wonderful-gadgets-quite-took-off.html > 'The 1920s satnav ... and other weird and wonderful gadgets that never quite took off' (in the [London] Daily Mail).
        'Maurice Collins, a retired businessman from Muswell Hill, London, has cherry-picked 50 must-have items from his collection of 1,400 historic gadgets to show off at the British Library Business and Intellectual Property Centre. Mr Morris said his collection was a celebration of "ingenious products that attempted to solve human difficulty"'. Pride of place in this piece is given to a 'route-finder for the well-equipped 1920s driver: a wristwatch-style device equipped with minuscule maps. Miniature scrolls bearing the directions were loaded onto the watch and revolved as the wearer continued his journey' (as illustrated). See also an undated announcement from Ananova, with a different illustration, < http://www.ananova.com:80/news/story/sm_2967876.html > 'The Plus Fours Routefinder was designed to be worn on the wrist - relying on good old-fashioned paper maps wound around wooden rollers, which the driver turned en route. The tiny scrolls also showed the mileage and gave a "stop" instruction at the journey's end. The device was intended to allow drivers to navigate around the UK, but with so few cars on the roads it never really took off.'

Chris Baruth, AGM map curator, escapes from Georgia


• August 13 < http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=783249 > 'Milwaukee academics escape Georgia violence' (by Georgia Pabst in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel).
        Describing how Christopher Baruth, curator of the American Geographical Society map collection at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee library and his wife, Barbara (with others) escaped from Georgia. They 'had been in the remote Caucasus mountains of Georgia, for the opening of an exhibit of historic photographs of Mestia, in the northwest Svaneti region. The permanent collection is housed at UWM.' After 20 hours of difficult and dangerous driving, they had to walk across to Turkey and then wait two days for a flight home.

Donor of rare map collection to Queen's University Library, Kingston, Ontario dies


• August 9. < http://www.ospreyobituaries.com/sitepages/obituary.asp?oId=255768&source=Kingston%20Whig%20Standard > 'Obituary for Albert Henry Ruddell'.
        The death has been announced (on 6 August) of Albert H. Ruddell, who was in his 85th year. In 2003, he donated a collection of 175 maps to Queen's University Library. These were the subject of an exhibition in January-March 2006.

Young gallery curator in Georgia who researches the maps he sells


• August 8. < http://www.ajc.com:80/news/content/hotjobs/careercenter/articles/2008/08/08/0810_wilmjmaps.html > 'Why I love my job. Kenneth Hosley, Curator' (Karl W. Ritzler for ajcjobs).
        Kenneth Hosley is the managing curator of the Grey Parrot Gallery, Buckhead owned by the collector Alex Branch. He joined after graduating from the University of Georgia in 2003. What is interesting and gratifying is his enthusiasm for "tracking down rare maps, manuscripts and books that people haven't seen for hundreds of years". 'Hosley spends a great deal of time researching his finds to put them in their proper historical context. That can involve hours of searching the Internet and looking for original sources of information in the University of Georgia's historical holdings in Athens or at the Georgia Historical Society in Savannah ... "Finding one-of-a-kind pieces and working with people who love the same thing," Hosley said. "These are actual pieces of history. ... To hold history in my hand - you can't get that anywhere else."' While much of the material has expected Georgia connections, the gallery has much wider coverage.

Profile of collector/dealer Ky Kylander


• August 7. < http://www.wickedlocal.com/duxbury/news/x1592404692/Duxbury-s-man-of-many-maps > 'Duxbury’s man of many maps' (by Caroline Dufault in the Duxbury Wicked Local).
        A profile of Clarence (Ky) Kylander, who started collecting maps in 1989 and has now amassed 200, mostly of the New England area [he lives in Duxbury, Mass.]. He also deals in maps from Snug Harbor Cartographer. Now retired, he is one of that large group of medical map collectors.

CONTENTdm features Nevada site for August


• August [seen 2nd] < http://www.oclc.org/news/announcements/announcement290.htm > 'CONTENTdm featured collections: August 2008' (announcement from OCLC - 'The world's libraries. Connected').
        The 'Nevada in Maps' site (Ansari Map Library, University of Nevada), with its 4,200 scans, is one of four featured by CONTENTdm for August. 'The original focus of this digital map site was a collection of historic maps of Nevada presenting topographic, geologic and mining themes. Many of these maps are over 100 years old, deteriorating, rare, not cataloged and, therefore, not readily available or even known to potential patrons. There are now over 4200 maps and atlases on this site with many more to be added. The site also includes contemporary maps of Nevada and the Great Basin.'

Canadian government makes political capital out of Arctic map


• August 1. < http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/news/story.html?id=47e09716-9396-441f-88be-fbb9af626b67 > 'Ancient map prompts renewed debate over Arctic sovereignty. Century-old relic discovered in Lévis' (by Randy Boswell in the Montreal Gazette).
        'The rediscovery of an important century-old map of the Canadian arctic created by Quebec explorer Joseph-Elzéar Bernier - the legendary ship captain credited with cementing Canadian control over its polar frontier - gave Prime Minister Stephen Harper an opportunity yesterday to reassert his government's determination to defend Canada's Arctic sovereignty.
        'The vintage map, recently found by Quebec archivists, was unveiled by Harper and provincial heritage officials during a ceremony held in Lévis, Que., where Bernier lived before his death in 1934 and where Harper is hosting a major Conservative party gathering this week. Jeanne Coude, a Lévis history buff who has been spearheading efforts to erect a monument paying tribute to Bernier, described the map as a "unique" record of the explorer's Arctic travels and his key contribution to securing Canadian control over the vast Arctic archipelago.
        'Born in 1852, Bernier was raised to pilot ships and emerged in the early 1900s as the Canadian government's top flag- bearer in the Arctic region. At the time, the country's hold on the Arctic islands - deeded to Canada by the British government in the 1880s - was still considered tenuous because U.S. and Scandinavian explorers were more active in the region and several major islands remained disputed. Bernier led numerous expeditions into Arctic waters, conducting surveys and placing markers to solidify Canada's claims over hundreds of thousands of square kilometres of land and sea.' No details of the map are given and the photograph shows only part of it.

Cartographic historian appointed director of the Clements Library


• July 24 (seen 29th) < http://www.ns.umich.edu/htdocs/releases/story.php?id=6655 > 'Americana curator, scholar to lead U-M's Clements Library' (news release from the University of Michigan).
        J. Kevin Graffagnino is to be the new director of the William L. Clements Library at the University of Michigan. Subject to formal approval in September, he will start on 17 November 2008. He has a history doctorate from the University of Massachusetts, was a rare book dealer, and is currently executive director of the Vermont Historical Society. Mention is made of his 16 books and 60 articles. Among those with a cartographic theme is The Shaping of Vermont: From the Wilderness to the Centennial, 1749-1877 (Rutland, Vt., 1983).

More on the Ganado collection of Malta maps


• July 25 [updates 26th & 27th, below] < http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20080725/local/unique-map-collection-transferred-to-heritage-malta > 'Antique maps transferred to Heritage Malta' (in the Times of Malta).
        'Heritage Malta today formally acquired a unique collection of antique maps of Malta which was built over a period of 50 years by lawyer and historian Dr Albert Ganado ... The maps will be kept in the National Museum of Fine Arts in Valletta. They will not be put on permanent display but will be exhibited during specific exhibitions. The map collection which is to be known as "The Albert Ganado Map Collection" is the largest and most complete collection of antique maps of Malta in the world. The manuscript maps are unique and many of the maps are very rare and are not found on the market. The Ganado collection is probably the only one that shows the development of certain representations of the Maltese islands such as the Great Siege of 1565 and the plans of Valletta. "These Great Siege maps are of great importance as some of them were printed whilst the siege was in progress to disseminate the news in Europe particularly in Italy, Germany, France and the Netherlands," Heritage Malta said.
        'The collection consists of 19 manuscript maps, and 431 printed maps made between 1507 and 1899. Many of the maps were made before 1570 when Abraham Ortelius published the first standard Atlas. Most of these maps were printed as single sheets and only a few of them are left. Some are found only in the Ganado collection.' [Update 26 July < http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20080726/local/a-gift-for-future-generations > : 'Dr Tabone [chairman of Heritage Malta - featured in a photograph with Dr Ganado] said the maps will be made accessible to the public and will therefore help those who wish to study and research the subject as well as provide additional insight into Maltese cartography.' The piece 'A gift for future generations', by Lisa Gwen Baldacchino, adds further details about the background to the agreement. See also 'Ganado Map Collection transferred to Heritage Malta', by Annaliza Borg < http://www.independent.com.mt/news.asp?newsitemid=72897 >] [See the earlier entry on 16 July 2008]

      'Map Collection transferred to Heritage Malta' (Gozo News 27 July 2008) < http://gozonews.com/item/map-collection-transferred-to-heritage-malta/ > adds further details. The collection will be known as "The Albert Ganado Map Collection". 'He has written widely about the subject and is the author, with Dr Maurice Agius Vadalà, of A Study in Depth of 143 Maps Representing the Great Siege of Malta of 1565? (1994-95). In 2003 he wrote Valletta Città Nuova: A Map History (1566-1600).'

The Old Print Shop is 110 years old


• July 23. < http://www.nysun.com/antiques/selling-prints-for-generations/82427/ > 'Selling Prints for Generations' (by Alex Taylor in the New York Sun).
        About the Old Print Shop, at 150 Lexington Avenue, New York, founded in 1898, and now run by the third and fourth generations of Newmans. Their speciality is 19th-century American prints and early maps. 'In March, the Old Print Shop sold a previously unknown variant of John Melish's well-known map of America, circa 1816-20, to the Library of Congress, for more than $50,000. ... It is also the type of shop that is becoming increasingly rare. "When I started working with my dad in the 1970s, there was a great gallery like ours in most cities," Robert Newman said. "There was Goodspeed's in Boston, Zeitlin's in Los Angeles, Sessler's in Philadelphia, and Nebenzal in Chicago. But they've either retired, shut down, been bought out, or closed."'

Another book from Miles Harvey


• July 17. < http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121631926429962663.html?mod=googlenews_wsj > '"Painter in a Savage Land: The Strange Saga of the First European Artist in North America"' (by Miles Harvey in the Wall Street Journal).
        An introduction to, and excerpts from, the book with the title above, published by Random House. The subject is Jacques Le Moyne de Morgues, who produced drawings of the Native Americans in the south-eastern U.S.A. (1562-4), with an accompanying map, later published by De Bry. The style is the same mixture of history and autobiography employed in Miles Harvey's earlier The Island of Lost Maps, about the map thief Gilbert Bland.

Dr Albert Ganado's collection of early Malta maps goes to government of Malta


• July 16. < http://www.independent.com.mt:80/news.asp?newsitemid=72307 > 'Parliament: Freedom of Information Bill unanimously approved' (by Reuben Fenech in the Malta Independent Online).
        'A parliamentary resolution was unanimously approved in the beginning of yesterday’s parliamentary sitting to the effect that Dr Albert Ganado and his wife Muriel Ganado can now transfer a rare collection of Malta maps valued over e1,747,500 [i.e. Euros = about $1,200,000] to the government of Malta in exchange of the immovable property where Dr Ganado and his wife live. The said immovable property, which has been rented by the government to the Ganado family for a very long time, is valued at e1,727,500. The rare collection of maps has been described in a report laid out in the House of Representatives by Mr Joseph C. Sammut as being unique and of significant historical and cultural value to Malta.' Dr Ganado has long been recognised as the outstanding authority on the mapping of Malta, and his collection is without equal. It remains to be seen what arrangements might be made for access. See the announcement to MapHist in January 2006 about plans to digitise the 600-item collection. [See the later entry on 25 July 2008]

An interactive look at the streets and buildings of mid-18th century Rome


• July 13. < http://www.registerguard.com/csp/cms/sites/dt.cms.support.viewStory.cls?cid=123962&sid=39&fid=1 > 'At the intersection of 18th and 21st (centuries, that is): a map of Rome ' (by Lewis Taylor in the [Oregon] Register-Guard).
        A descriptive piece about the University of Oregon's ongoing project based around the 1748 Giambattista Nolli plan of Rome. The new feature, Vasi’s Grand Tour of Rome, took two years of research and was funded by a $200,000 grant from the Getty Research Institute. 'The group’s previous project, the Nolli Map, allowed viewers to explore the city using a combination of satellite images and the work of Nolli, a master cartographer who created the first accurate map of Rome in 1748. Similar to the hybrid maps found on Web sites such as GMaps, the program actually pre-dates Google’s interactive mapping system. The Nolli map won awards and attracted far more Internet traffic than its creators ever dreamed of ... While the Nolli Map blended cartography, history, technology, architecture and urban design, the updated site adds art and perhaps a degree of cultural history. Users can still click on Nolli’s detailed and highly accurate map and learn all about the city’s hundreds of architectural wonders. Now, the site also includes hundreds of etchings by Vasi, many of which show people going about their daily lives in the city.' Jim Tice, whose contemporary building photographs can be compared with Vasi's illustrations, draws attention to 'Nolli’s revolutionary means of mapping by using shaded areas for streets and white areas for the interior spaces of buildings'.

Rare maps of Pennsylvania and a view of Philadelphia coming up at auction


• July 2. < http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/the-jay-t-snider-collection,454948.shtml > 'The Jay T. Snider Collection Featuring the History of Philadelphia and Important Americana To Be Sold at Auction' (press release from Bloomsbury Auctions).
        Bloomsbury Auctions in New York will hold a sale in November 2008 of the 'preeminent Americana collection related to the City of Brotherly Love'. It was formed over the past fifteen years by Jay T. Snider. The following are itemised: Thomas Holme's 'A Mapp of ye Improved Part of Pensilvania', and 'Nicholas Scull's excessively rare 1759 Map of Pennsylvania, as well as a lovely example of Scull and George Heap's East Prospect of the City of Philadelphia'.