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Dear Collectors,
We are pleased to share a newly cataloged selection of fifteen historic maps—each a window into a moment when borders shifted, empires rose or fell, and the very shape of the world was contested and redrawn.
Each map is a statement of its time: a political tool, a commercial necessity, or a scholarly enterprise. Taken together, they reveal how deeply maps are entwined with empire, resistance, and ambition.
We invite you to explore this exceptional group and consider the stories these maps preserve—because at Arader Galleries, we don’t just sell maps. We offer the chance to own history.
Graham Arader
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Giovanni Battista Ramusio. La Nuova Francia. Venice, 1565.
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$ 9,500.00
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Among the earliest printed maps of Canada, capturing Europe’s first cartographic impressions of the St. Lawrence River and the promise of a new world. In 1565, the region labeled “La Nuova Francia” (New France) was part of early French colonial ambitions in North America under King Charles IX, with exploratory efforts led by figures like Jacques Cartier and Jean Ribault, amid fierce competition with Spain and England during the height of the French Wars of Religion and just after the destruction of the French Huguenot colony at Fort Caroline by Spanish forces in Florida.
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John Speed. Map of Greece. London, 1626.
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$ 7,500.00
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In 1626, Greece was under Ottoman rule, governed by Sultan Murad IV, during a period of relative internal consolidation for the empire, though the region remained a focal point of tension between the Ottomans and European powers such as Venice and the Habsburgs, especially as the Thirty Years’ War raged elsewhere in Europe.
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Johannes Georg Fleisher. Charte Eines Theils von Nord America enthaltend ein Stück von Neu Spanien und Louisiana. Frankfurt, 1786.
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$ 7,500.00
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Captures European curiosity and ambition in post-Revolutionary North America, mapping contested colonial frontiers with Enlightenment-era precision. In 1786, the region depicted—comprising parts of New Spain and Louisiana—was under Spanish control following France’s 1762 cession of Louisiana to Spain after the Seven Years’ War, during a period of strategic imperial management under King Charles III, as Spain sought to strengthen its North American territories amid rising tensions with Britain and the early stirrings of unrest in its colonial holdings.
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J. W. C. Williams (1811-1893). New-York and Its Environs. (Paris & New York: L. Turgis, c. 1855)
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$ 7,500.00
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In 1855, New York was rapidly industrializing and expanding under the leadership of Mayor Fernando Wood, as the United States—led by President Franklin Pierce—faced rising tensions over slavery that would soon erupt into the Civil War, while the city itself emerged as a booming port, financial hub, and gateway for immigration amid sweeping social and economic transformation.
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![Theodore De Bry. A Cidade de Angra Na Ilhade Iesc Xpo Da Tercera, 1601. [Azores]](//aradernyc.com/cdn/shop/files/MAPH0305_580x.jpg?v=1745428766)
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Theodore De Bry. A Cidade de Angra Na Ilhade Iesc Xpo Da Tercera, 1601. [Azores]
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$ 6,500.00
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One of the earliest printed views of the Azores. In 1601, Angra on Terceira Island in the Azores was a key strategic port under Spanish control, as Portugal remained united with Spain under King Philip III during the Iberian Union (1580–1640), a period when the Azores played a vital role in transatlantic navigation and imperial logistics amid ongoing conflicts with England and Dutch privateers vying for dominance over Atlantic trade routes.
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Sebastian Munster. Die Lander Asie... c. 1550s
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$ 5,000.00
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A rare and influential Renaissance view of Asia, capturing the blend of myth, trade, and exploration that defined Europe’s early geographic imagination. Between 1544 and 1572, the lands of Asia depicted in Münster’s Cosmographia were under the dominion of vast and diverse empires—including the Ottoman Empire under Suleiman the Magnificent, the Safavid Empire in Persia, and the Mughal Empire in India—during a time when European exploration and trade ambitions were expanding rapidly, spurred by the Age of Discovery and intensified by the lucrative spice trade and emerging global networks.
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Gerard Valck. La Mer Mediterranee, 1695.
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$ 4,500.00
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A masterwork of Dutch cartography, charting the heart of early modern maritime tradeand diplomacy in the Mediterranean with both elegance and precision. In 1695, the Mediterranean Sea was a contested zone dominated by the maritime powers of the Ottoman Empire, France under Louis XIV, and the Habsburgs, amid ongoing naval conflicts, corsair activity, and shifting alliances following the Great Turkish War (1683–1699), which reshaped control of key ports and sea routes across Southern Europe, North Africa, and the Levant.
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Sebastian Munster. Map of Paris, c. 1550s.
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$ 4,500.00
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One of the earliest printed views of Paris, offering a rare window into the medieval city at the dawn of the Renaissance. In the 1550s, Paris was the capital of France under King Henry II, during a period marked by the growing influence of the Renaissance and rising religious tensions between Catholics and Protestants that would soon erupt into the French Wars of Religion, foreshadowing decades of internal strife that reshaped the nation’s political and cultural landscape.
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Plan du Combat d'Alger 1775 (Spanish Attack of Algiers). France, 1775.
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$ 3,500.00
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In 1775, Algiers was under Ottoman control, governed by a semi-autonomous Dey, while Spain—ruled by Charles III—launched a failed military expedition against the city as part of ongoing Mediterranean conflicts between European powers and the Barbary States, highlighting the volatile struggle for control over North African ports and maritime trade routes.
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Vincenzo Dotto. Padova circondata dalle muraglie vecchie (Padua, 1623)
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$ 3,500.00
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A rare glimpse of Renaissance Padua enclosed by its original medieval walls, preserving the city’s historic character at a turning point in its urban evolution. In 1623, Padua was part of the Republic of Venice, a powerful maritime state under the leadership of Doge Antonio Priuli, during a time of relative peace following the War of the Uskoks (1615–1618), with the city maintaining its status as a key center of learning and culture within one of Europe’s most enduring independent republics.
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![John Speed. Northumberland, 1610. [England]](//aradernyc.com/cdn/shop/files/MB0430_580x.jpg?v=1745356828)
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John Speed. Northumberland, 1610. [England]
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$ 3,500.00
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A richly detailed fusion of history and geography, offering one of the earliest and most artistic printed views of England’s northernmost county. In 1610, Northumberland was part of the Kingdom of England under King James I, during a period of relative peace following the Union of the Crowns in 1603, though still marked by lingering border tensions with Scotland and recent memories of the 1605 Gunpowder Plot, as James worked to unify his kingdoms and strengthen royal authority.
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U.S. Department of the Interior, and Herbert E. Newton. Map of Kauai. Washington, 1901.
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$ 2,800.00
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This U.S. government map of Kauai captures the island at the dawn of its territorial era, offering a vivid snapshot of Hawaii’s transformation under American rule. In 1901, Kauai was part of the U.S. Territory of Hawaii, following the 1898 annexation of the Hawaiian Kingdom by the United States during the presidency of William McKinley, a period marked by American consolidation of Pacific power amid growing imperial ambitions and the recent victory in the Spanish-American War.
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Mark Tiddeman. A Chart of New York Harbour..., 1780.
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$ 2,800.00
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In 1780, New York Harbor was under British control during the height of the American Revolutionary War, with the city serving as the main British military and naval base in North America, as General George Washington’s Continental Army fought to reclaim territory and secure independence from King George III’s rule.
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Vincenzo Maria Coronelli. Globe gore of Atlantic Ocean, Spain, Portugal, West Coast of Africa, England. Venice, 1698.
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$ 2,500.00
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In 1698, the Atlantic Ocean and its bordering powers—Spain under Charles II, Portugal under Peter II, and England under William III—were emerging from the Nine Years’ War (1688–1697), a conflict that redefined European dominance over Atlantic trade and foreshadowed the War of Spanish Succession, which would soon engulf much of the depicted region.
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Antonio Zatta. Messico. Venice, 1785.
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$ 2,200.00
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In 1785, New Spain—including present-day Mexico, California, and the American Southwest—was a vast Spanish colony under the rule of King Charles III, administered by the Viceroy in Mexico City, during a time of Bourbon Reforms aimed at tightening imperial control and increasing revenue, while indigenous resistance and tensions with expanding British and Russian interests along the Pacific Coast foreshadowed future conflict.
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![Theodore De Bry. A Cidade de Angra Na Ilhade Iesc Xpo Da Tercera, 1601. [Azores]](http://aradernyc.com/cdn/shop/files/MAPH0305_580x.jpg?v=1745428766)
![John Speed. Northumberland, 1610. [England]](http://aradernyc.com/cdn/shop/files/MB0430_580x.jpg?v=1745356828)
