Old World Auctions' 200th online-only sale, October 10th, will offer just five rare and coveted maps

RICHMOND, Va. - Sept. 24, 2024 - PRLog -- To celebrate its 200th auction, Old World Auctions is offering five of the most coveted maps of the last 500 years. Auction #200: Cartographic Treasures is an Internet-only auction that will be available for live bidding on Thursday, October 10^th, at 12 o'clock noon Eastern time.

The brief but important catalog includes two of the most important collections of travels and voyages from the 16^th century, some of the earliest images of Native Americans available to a European audience, and iconic maps that influenced mapmakers for centuries.

There is no live, in-person gallery bidding. The catalog is up for viewing and bidding now, at oldworldauctions.com/catalog/current, as well as the popular online bidding platforms LiveAuctioneers.com and Invaluable.com. Phone and absentee bids will be accepted.

"For our 200^th auction, we've curated historic pieces that are on many collectors' wish lists," said Eliane Dotson, who co-owns Old World Auctions with her husband, Jon. "These pieces are not only rare, but also in splendid condition – a remarkable combination."

Mr. Dotson said, "My favorite item in the auction is Purchas His Pilgrimes, which has a superb example of John Smith's map of Virginia still bound in the volume. We've only seen a few examples of Smith's map, and they are typically separated from the volume and have significant condition issues, so this example is particularly desirable."

Purchas His Pilgrims, published 1625-1626, is an important five-volume collection of voyages with 88 maps. At the beginning of the 17th century, Samuel Purchas, an English cleric, set out to publish a compendium of voyages to foreign countries. To illustrate his work, Purchas obtained the rights to use Jodocus Hondius' copperplates from Atlas Minor. Fifty-eight of these half-page maps were included in Purchas His Pilgrimes, with English titles inserted above them (est. $55,000-$70,000).

That's not even the auction's expected top lot. That honor goes to lot #5, the complete first edition of Theodore de Bry's Grands Voyages (Parts 1-9 in two volumes), published 1590-1602. Grands Voyages covers explorations and surveys of the Western Hemisphere and is considered to be the most complete illustrated work on the history of America in the 16th century. The project was begun by Theodore de Bry of Frankfurt in 1590 and was to continue for another 54 years (est. $120,000-$150,000).

People can register to bid online at https://www.oldworldauctions.com/register.

To learn more, visit www.OldWorldAuctions.com.