MAP, Gulf of Mexico, Keulen

The First Sea Chart of the Western Portion of the Gulf of Mexico. Gulf of Mexico. Johannes van Keulen, Pas Kaart van de Golff van Mexico, 1695 (circa). Black & White. Two compass roses orient this stunning chart with north to the right. It covers the western portion of the Gulf of Mexico, stretching from the panhandle of Florida around to the Yucatan peninsula. Van Keulen's chart was mostly derived from an exceedingly rare chart by Hessel Gerritsz, c. 1631. Of note, the panhandle of Florida lacks any familiar form and the Baja de Spirito Sancto represents the mouth of the Mississippi River. An inset at lower left shows the seaport of Vera Cruz and the island Fort of San Juan d'Ulloa. The chart was engraved by the eminent geographer and mathematician Claes Janszon Vooght. It originally appeared in Johannes van Keulen's fourth volume of the Zee-Fakkel in 1684. This is the third of four states with shoals added off the coasts of Florida and the Yucatan peninsula.
Dimensions: 20.3 x 23.1 in
Condition Report: An overall dark impression with an 8" section along the left border including rhumb lines professionally replaced in facsimile. There is an adjacent 2" tear and a 1" tear along the right border that have also been professionally repaired on verso. Grade: B