Catalogue description North America, east coast: United States and Canada: eastern Great Lakes, mouth of the...

North America, east coast: United States and Canada: eastern Great Lakes, mouth of the St Lawrence River, and Atlantic seaboard. Centred on an area of Southern Ontario around Lake Simcoe, occupied by the Huron peoples. Map of 'Novvelle [Nouvelle or New] France'. Known as 'The Huron Map'. Shows coastline, topography, water bodies (including Grand Lac [Lake Superior], La Mer Douce [Lake Huron], Lac de Cens du Chat [Lake Erie], Lac Sainct Louys [Lake Ontario] and Le Lac Ouentara [Lake Simcoe]), and settlements (Habitation des Hollandois [Fort George or New Amsterdam later New York], Quebec, and native villages: 17 Huron, 8 Petun, 14 Neutral and 3 Iroquois). Includes distribution of native peoples: Huron, Nation du Petun, Nation-Neutre [Neutral], Algomquins [Algonquin], Iroquois and Montaignets [Montagnais]; and also the areas occupied by the European contact settlers: Lacadie [Acadia] (French); La Virginie [Virginia] and La Nouvelle Angleterre [New England] (British); Nouvelle Flandre [New Flanders] (Dutch), and Le Nouveau Mexic [New Mexico] (Spanish). Map labels are in French and Huron, and remarks indicate that Lake Superior was believed to flow towards China. French coloured manuscript on parchment. Plain border and title in cartouche. No scale indicated. No north point but map orientated to the north. Compiler not known but thought to be drawn by a French cartographer using information from the Huron people and French travellers including Jesuit missionaries. Also influenced by Samuel Champlain's 'Carte of Nouvelle France' of 1632. Carries Becher's red 'M' classification mark. Endorsed twice: with stamp of John Montresor [British military engineer (1736-99) who served in North America from 1754-1770]