Wilkinson, Robert

North America. London:  Robert  Wilkinson, 12 August 1804



Broadsheet (22 x 26 in.; 559 x 660 mm). Engraved by E. Bourne, handcolored; short fold split on bottom margin, light toning. Hinged to mat board.

The David Rumsey Historical Map Collection, List no.  5156 (http://www.davidrumsey.com/detail?id=1-1-4400-390074&name=North+America); Stevens & Tree 62(a); Wheat, Mapping the Transmississippi West, 357 (1824 edition); Streeter Sale 6:3793

Broadsheet (22 x 26 in.; 559 x 660 mm). Handcolored; short fold split on bottom margin, light toning. Hinged to mat board.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

First edition and apparently the first to show the entire Louisiana Territory as part of the United States, both in the delineated boundaries on the map and in the table showing the possessions of the United States: "Province, Ceded by France 30 Apr. 1803, Louisiana." The Bradley Map of The United States dated 2 June 1804, is the first map to mention the cession of Louisiana: "The French call the country West of Conecuh River Louisiana & have ceded it to the United States," but the Bradley map shows only a small portion of Louisiana Territory just west of the Mississippi River. Wilkinson follows Arrowsmith's geography in his Map Exhibiting all the New Discoveries in the Interior Parts of North America (1802) in the Rocky Mountain and the Oregon River areas, and adds new settlements and place names not on Arrowsmith's map along the northwest coast. Franklinia is shown between Tennessee and North Carolina.

The large folio general atlas that this map appeared in is elusive: it is not listed in any references. Phillips lists only Wilkinson's quarto general atlas issue (1800–1808) for which B. Smith was the engraver of the maps of North America, but indicates that two maps were reduced from the sheet maps. Wilkinson mentions publishing it in parts, with eleven maps completed by 1808 and thirty-five completed by 1823 (noted on the index pages of his quarto general atlas and Atlas Classica of those dates).  No copy of the map has sold at auction since the Streeter sale.