BARBOT, R. Planisphère Physique, Politique, Historique, Economique, Industriel,...

BARBOT, R. Planisphère Physique, Politique, Historique, Economique, Industriel, Commercial et Agricole . . . Paris, A. Fayard, 1879. Fine contemporary col. Folded canvas map divided into 50 segments and colored at the time. In original cardboard case covered with marbled paper. A very fine copy. Case a little rubbed. 905 x 1230 mm Large and rare world map covering a wide range of subjects, such as the heights of the main mountains, distances between cities, exchange rates, hours at the main points of the globe, currents, etc. Drawn by R. Barbot, under the direction of F. de La Brugère. The map includes a spiral graph comparing times in the world's major cities. This graph can be used to calculate any time difference, and is colored to show how afternoon hours shift as you move east or west. Next to the graph, a table compares the heights of all the world's major mountains, Mount Everest being the highest. Volcanoes are shown here erupting. The various tables are a mine of international information. One shows the exchange rates of all the world's major and minor currencies. Another shows the "Universal Tariff of Telegraphic Correspondence", indicating, for example, the cost of telegraph calls abroad. The most expensive area to call from France is Argentina, which costs almost five times as much as a twenty-word message to New York. Another comparative table shows the length of the globe's main rivers. The map shows the world's main surface currents, as well as the distances between major cities. The map is completed on both sides by representations of the North and South poles. The map was apparently first published in 1877, and used in part as an advertisement for Artheme Fayard's "Atlas et Géographie Universels...". The map appears to condense much of the information presented in the book, which also contains a table of distances, a world map and a polar map. Expert : Béatrice Loeb-Larocque