Carte du Golphe de St. Laurent et Pays Voisins
Cartographer / Artist: Jacques-Nicolas Bellin
Date Created: c. 1757
Medium: Copperplate engraving
Physical Dimensions: 13.9 × 9.1 inches
Geographic Scope: Gulf of Saint Lawrence, Newfoundland, Quebec, Canada
Archive Catalog ID: fp4-img-1916
Provenance: The Dr. Joseph R. Rubini Archive
Collection: Canada
This finely detailed 18th-century French chart depicts the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and its surrounding maritime regions, including Newfoundland (Terre-Neuve), Isle Royale (Cape Breton Island), Isle Saint-Jean (Prince Edward Island), Anticosti Island, and the Gaspé Peninsula. Engraved by royal hydrographer Jacques-Nicolas Bellin, the map was created to accompany Abbé Prévost's monumental travel compilation, Histoire Générale des Voyages. The chart provides a comprehensive geographical overview of the strategic maritime entrance into New France during a pivotal period of Anglo-French imperial rivalry in North America. The map illustrates coastal topographies, shoals, soundings, and anchorages essential for trans-Atlantic navigation and fishing fleets. Native regional ethnonyms and territories are prominently recorded across the northern mainland, including Papinachois, Les Ounescapi, Les Esquimaux, and Gaspesiens. Key historic French colonial sites, such as the strategic fortress of Louisbourg on Isle Royale and various fishing ports along Newfoundland's coast, are also clearly denoted. Visually anchored by an elegant rococo title cartouche at the lower right, the chart features a scale measured in French leagues ('Lieues communes de France') and a longitude grid oriented to the Paris Meridian. Bottom marginal text denotes its publication parameters in Tome 14, Page 263, representing a fine example of mid-18th-century French cartographic craftsmanship.
Condition: Light paper toning and faint scattered age foxing along the outer margins.. Original horizontal fold line as issued for atlas inclusion, with mild creasing.. Strong, dark copperplate impression on sturdy laid paper with crisp lettering.




