Ratzer, Bernard, and William Faden

Copper-engraved map (32 x 24 in.; 813 x 610 mm). 

Expert repairs to folds and margins.

BMC Maps 10:251; Degrees of Latitude 47, state 1; Guthorn, British Maps of the American Revolution p.39; Schwartz & Ehrenberg, Mapping of America p.193; Snyder, The Mapping of New Jersey pp.57-59; Stevens & Tree 37a

THE FIRST STATE OF ONE OF THE FINEST AND MOST CELEBRATED REVOLUTIONARY WAR ERA MAPS OF NEW JERSEY, MADE DURING THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR This elegant composition depicts New Jersey in finely engraved detail at a large scale of 7 miles to an inch. The map was the grandest representation of the state made up to that t.mes , taking in the entire breadth of the state, as well as the Hudson Valley, most of Long Island, eastern Pennsylvania and all of Delaware Bay. It captures the state's rich topography, including the Jersey Highlands and the Palisades in the north and the broad Pine Barrens and coastal marshes in the south. The county divisions, major roads and towns are all carefully depicted, indicating that New Jersey was, by the standards of the t.mes , heavily populated, having over 120,000 inhabitants.

Faden based his rendering of the state largely on the manuscript works of Bernard Ratzer, a British military surveyor most famous for his map of New York City. This copy is an excellent example of this important map, featuring a strong impression and good margins.