1827 Amer. Mer. No. 18. Partie Du Bresil.

This map of Brazil is from Vandermaelen’s atlas of South America. The territory it covers constitutes a relatively small area of Brazil, and is rendered in some detail. Major and minor river systems are well depicted, and the already large city of Rio de Janeiro is featured. Many place names dot the map both on the coast and inland. Mountain ranges are shown pictorially.  The maps’ most distinguishing qualities include use of the same scale and projection. The consistent nature of these elements allowed the maps to be joined together to form a huge globe measuring over 25 feet in diameter.  About Philippe Marie Vandermaelen Born to a wealthy family, Vandermaelen was more interested in cartography than in his father’s business, and was obsessed with maps from a young age. He taught himself mathematics, astronomy, and mapmaking and even plotted the battles of the Napoleonic wars on his own. He made a mark for himself by publishing the first lithographic atlas, his Atlas Universel, which