| Nicolas Louis De La Caille - Leonhard Euler | |
| Berlin, (1763) 1770 Carte de l'Arc du Meridien mesure au Cap de Bonne Esperance par Mons. de la Caille. as part of CARTE DES DIFFERENTES OPERATIONS FAITES POR DETERMINER LA FIGURE DE LA TERRE Original copperplate
engraved map |
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This map is a derivative of a map by Abbé Nicolas-Louis de La Caille (1713-1762). The Abbé de la Caille was a noted astronomer and mathematician, whose expedition to South Africa in 1751 is a landmark in the history of science. This map is particularly accurate for the time. While in South Africa from 1751 to 1753, he completed a number of projects in astronomy and geography, one of which was the measurement of the arc of the meridian at Cape Town. In 1763, one year after his death, Lacaille's diary, written while he was at the Cape, was published as Journal historique du voyage fait au Cap de Bonne-Espérance par feu M. l'abbé de La Caille (Paris, chez Guillyn). It included a small map, 'Carte du Cap de Bonne Esperance et de ses Environs'. According to research conducted through WorldCat, there is another example of this specific map at the Bibliotheek Universiteit Van Amsterdam. The publisher for this map appears to be the l'Academie de Berlin (Prussian Academy of Sciences). In the notes on this map, there is also a reference to a Leonhard Euler as the editor for this work. Euler was a member of the Academy from 1741-1766. The map was engraved by Friederich Berger. This map of
the Cape of Good Hope is one of four plates that make up the
sheet describing measurements of the Meridian along with Peru,
France, and the Polar Circle. This copy of the la Caille also
contains the lines of triangulation as in the original published
in Paris. Very Fine Condition.
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