Guillaume de L‘Isle (1675 – 1726)/ Philippe Buache (1700 – 1773)
Guillaume de L‘Isle, also spelt Delisle, was a French cartographer known for his accurate and popular maps of Europe and the newly explored Africa and the Americas. He learnt geography from his father Claude, a historian and geographer under Nicolas Sanson, then a leading light of French cartography. The boy showed early signs of being an exceptional talent in drawing maps. In order to perfect his skills, Guillaume became a student of the famous astronomer Jean-Dominique Cassini from whom he received a superb grounding in scientific cartography. At 27, he was admitted into the French „Academie Royale des Sciences“ and only five years later he received the title „Premier Geographe du Roi“.
Like many cartographers of his day, de L‘Isle did not travel with the explorers but drew maps in his office. Because of his status and his excellent reputation he received first-hand information from travelers who returned from the New World. Therefore he had a competitive advantage in relation to Nicolas Sanson and Jean-Baptiste Nolin.
After the untimely death of Guillaume de l‘Isle in 1726, his widow tried to preserve his workshop but their son lacked practical knowledge.
Philippe Buache was a French cartographer and map publisher. He began his career as the workshop assistant and apprentice to Guillaume de l‘Isle, worked with him many years, married his daughter and finally took over the publishing firm after her father’s death. He republished many of his maps and charts. Buache gained the title „Premier Geographe du Roi“ in 1729 and was elected to the „Academie Royale des Sciences“ in 1730. He is most respected for his introduction of hachuring as a method from displaying underwater elevation on a two dimensional map surface.
His most famous work is the Atlas „Considerations geographiques et physiques sur les decouvertes nouvelles dans la grande mer“ which he published in Paris 1754.
Map Details
This very scarce map shows Scandinavia, the Baltic region,
Poland („Pologne Roy.“), Germany („Allemagne“), the eastern coast of the Shetland Islands („Isles de Schetland“) with Iceland and the Faroe Islands („Isles d‘Islande et de Fero a la Couronne de Danemarc“) in a strangely formed inset in the upper left corner.
The authors of the map and the publication year are written at the bottom of the title cartouche which also includes five distance scales.
The main part of the map is very detailed. With regard to Iceland there are few place-names along the coast line and in the interior only three: the bishoprics Skalholt („Skalhot“) and Holar („Hola“) without church symbols and the volcano „Mt. Hekla“ erupting. East of Iceland the mysterious „I. d‘ Enkhuse“ is to be seen.
The Arctic Circle is depicted nearly correctly, in Iceland a bit too south.