Földvári Books

18th-Century Spanish Manual for Military Cartography

[Spanish Military Cartography]

[Spain]: [18th-century]. Manuscript on paper. Written in Spanish by a neat hand in ink. In contemporary vellum. ff. 56. Possessor’s inscriptions on front and rear free endpapers (Josef [José] de Azpiroz y Xalon [Jalón]; Manuel Maria Arnedo Ximenez [Jimenez] de Cascante). Binding tanned, wormholes on the rear panel and on the front at the spine. Inside clean, occasional stains and wormholes at the gutter. Overall in very good condition.

An 18th-century Spanish manual on military cartography and architectural drafting.

This 18th-century Spanish manuscript details the techniques for creating, copying, and preserving military maps and architectural plans, combines artistic and technical methods essential for accurately depicting military architecture and field layouts.

The text is divided into four parts. The first part focuses on materials and tools essential for drafting and illustrating plans, covering the selection and preparation of colors, brushes, ink vessels, types of paper, and drawing instruments. The second part introduces definitions and measurements, including proportional scales in the "pie de Burgos" unit, and outlines general rules for drawing and "washing" (lavado—coloring) plans. The third part details methods for depicting fortified structures, such as trenches, batteries, and field camps arranged for battle, emphasizing practical representations of military installations, fortifications, and positions vital for planning and communication in military operations. The final part discusses shading and shadow techniques, crucial for adding depth and clarity to designs, with guidelines for realistic shadows, soft gradients, and semi-light effects to enhance the visual accuracy of military plans. It also includes methods for resizing and reproducing maps, along with instructions for mounting plans on canvas for durability.

In 18th-century Spain, military cartography was essential as European powers emphasized territorial defense. The Spanish military codified mapping techniques to accurately document and strategize their defenses. Manuals like this trained engineers in both scientific precision and practical artistry, equipping them to produce durable, detailed maps critical for military planning and communication. This manuscript exemplifies the technical and artistic skills valued in Spanish military cartography, and we could not trace that it was ever printed.

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Price: €2,000.00