Rare find, this Whimsical Carte of Topographic and Historic Intention, depicting the fabled Isle of Montalvo’s dream – the El Dorado of 49.. The glorious California we know and love is hereby presented by the Limner for what it may be worth – most likely more in smiles than cosmographic value! Jo Mora surrounded his map with vignettes and figures depicting the history and fantasy of California. This 1927 map A. Robertson (firm) shows bootleggers offshore Monterey, and Owens Valley residents kicking holes in the new Los Angeles aqueduct and many more very entertaining pics…. Many vignettes in the surround and characters on the map as well. Art is not my expertise, however, as many of us do, tried to educate myself as best I can using the internet, and this same piece has been featured by well respected galleries and art collectors. I will gladly answer any other questions you may have. Here goes: The overall color of the lithograph is a bit dark… But, after purchasing it, and bringing it home….. We do not think smoking is a factor as there is absolutely no smell that is normally associated w/ items from a smoking household. Pic 1 was taken inside, Pic 3,4,5 outside in natural light and this is about what the color really is. There are a few “blemishes/damages/imperfections”, and I will picture each. Colors overall are bright, the material is easily read, and it still displays well. Used a process of wet mounting whereas the litho was glued to a backing as the piece is not like a paper map you can pull out from the back…. Then the final backing that printers use is typical craft type brown paper, and is loose at the very top where I was going to peek….. And I can see and feel a hard backing that the litho is likely attached to. This may be a reason why there are some of the following effects of the process used and its age. There is an area of a split… Or crack in the finish about 3″ long, dark in coloring just like the rivers depicted, and you don’t notice it unless you are touching or feeling the map, + there are numerous small “splits, most likely from age….. There are a few “humps” like the print lost its grip on the backing.. Similar to what might appear when wallpapering… Again most likely due to age….. There is an area where the finish was scraped off, white looking on upper right hand side, about 6 inches down…. Not terrible, but noticeable (pictured for you)….. And lastly on the lower right hand corner, up about 6 looks like someone either spilled a liquid.. Like elongated drip markings…. Or maybe they tried to clean it….. I do not know. I think it would be worth sending this to a professional to clean and restore the small imperfections if they bother you, but I make it sound worse than it “shows”. There is SO MUCH information on this map, and SO MUCH to laugh at. This piece of wall art is very entertaining!! Hope this finds an appreciative home! The item “Rare Pictorial Map of California 1927-Whimsical Carte of Topographic+Historic” is in sale since Tuesday, November 16, 2021. This item is in the category “Antiques\Maps, Atlases & Globes\North America Maps”. The seller is “domiano1″ and is located in Addison, New York. This item can be shipped to United States.
- Type: Topographical Map
- Date Range: 1927
- US State: California
- Format: framed lithograph
- Year: 1927
- Original/Reproduction: Vintage Original
- Cartographer/Publisher: Jo Mora
- City: place of creation: San Francisco
- Country/Region: United States of America