1763 Map of Africa by Isaak Tirion

Isaak Tirion’s 1763 Kaart van Afrika door den Heer d’Anville is a finely engraved Dutch adaptation of Jean-Baptiste Bourguignon d’Anville’s groundbreaking African cartography, issued in Tirion’s Nieuwe en Beknopte Land Atlas. Reflecting Enlightenment restraint, it avoids speculative detail in the interior, though it preserves debates such as the Nile’s dual sources—Lake Tana and the legendary “Mountains of the Moon.” The map highlights European commercial and slave-trade forts along West Africa, while unusually rich toponymy marks the Dutch Cape with settlements like Stellenbosch and Drakenstein. Inland, references such as “Zimbabwe” and a “Groote Waterval” (echoing reports of Victoria Falls) reveal reliance on traveller accounts rather than surveys. Published in the same year as the Seven Years’ War’s conclusion, it situates Africa in an age when maritime circuits and coastal enclaves defined European knowledge, with Tirion tailoring d’Anville’s authoritative model to a Dutch readership deeply invested in Cape trade and geography.

This map is a reproduction of a historical map that is now in the public domain. It has been selected for its aesthetic appeal and historical interest and carefully restored and reproduced to preserve its original detail and character.  There may be marks and fold lines visible which add to the authentic look.  The map is printed on 230gsm heavyweight coated paper with a matte finish.  Most old maps were printed on uncoated rag or wood pulp papers and therefore a matte finish best represents the original map.