Finley, Anthony. “Massachusetts”

Anthony Finley.  “Massachusetts.” 

From A New General Atlas.  Philadelphia: A. Finley, ca. 1825.  11 1/4 x 8 1/2.  Engraving by Young & Delleker.  Original hand coloring.  Full margins.  Some fading of original hand color with scattered staining in map.  One small puncture in large stain under title filled.  Fair condition.  Sold as is. 

In the 1820’s, Anthony Finley produced a series of fine atlases in the then leading American cartographic center, Philadelphia.  Finley’s work is a good example of the quality that American publishers were beginning to obtain in the early decades of the century.  He was very concerned to depict as up-to-date information as was possible, and thus his map presents an accurate picture of South Carolina in the 1820s.  This map is elegantly presented, with crisp and clear engraving and very attractive pastel hand shading.  Towns, rivers, and political divisions are indicated, and the bright color makes this map as attractive as it is informative.