ARMILLARY SPHERE & SOLAR SYSTEMS 1830ca LAPIE UNUSUAL ANTIQUE CELESTIAL CHART

Systêmes Planétaires. 

Description: Striking and highly detailed fine unusual Pierre Lapie’s 1830 approx. original copper engraved celestial map.
 
The map is centered on an Armillary Sphere ("Sphère Armillaire Oblique"):
 
It occupies the center of the scene, mounted on a decorated pedestal. It represents the skeleton of the celestial sphere with the principal circles (equator, tropics, polar circles, and the diagonal band of the zodiac or ecliptic). At the bottom, two small diagrams show the "Sphère Droite" (Right Sphere) and the "Sphère Parallèle" (Parallel Sphere).
 
The Cosmological Systems (in the four corners):
 
Top left: Ptolemaic System (geocentric Ptolemaic model, with the Earth at rest at the center). Top right: Tycho-Brahé System (hybrid Tychonic model, where the Earth is at the center, the Sun revolves around it, but the other planets orbit the Sun).
 
Bottom left: Système des Egyptiens (Egyptian or partial geo-heliocentric model, where Mercury and Venus orbit the Sun, which in turn orbits the Earth).
 
Bottom right: Système de Copernic (Modern Copernican heliocentric model, with the Sun at the center).
 
Ancillary astronomical phenomena: Top center: Geometric diagrams describe the mechanisms of an eclipse de soleil (solar eclipse) and an eclipse de lune (lunar eclipse).
 
Center right: The diagram illustrates the phases of the moon with respect to the Earth and the sun's rays.
 
Source: Pierre Lapie. Atlas Classique et Universel De Geographie Ancienne Et Moderne, Servant tant à l'instruction de la Jeneusse qu'à l'intelligence de l'Histoire et des Voyages dans les differentes parties du MondeDressé pour l'Instruction de la Jeunesse, et notamment pour les Colleges Royaux, et les Ecoles Militaires. Par M. Lapie, Colonel au Corp Royal des Ingénieurs Géographes Militaires, Chevalier des Ordres Royaux de Saint-Louis et de Légion d'Honneur. ancient Directer du Cabinet Topographicque du Roi. Cinquième Édition, Revue et Corrigée. A Paris, Chez Anselin, Successeur de Maginet ... Et Chez Poquet.

Date: 1830 approx. ( undated )

Dimension: Map size approx.: cm 39,8 x 27,8

Condition: Very strong and dark impression on good paper. Map old original colored. Wide margins. Small foxing and browming. Conditions are as you can see in the images. 

Mapmakers: Pierre M. Lapie (fl. 1779 - 1850) and his son Alexandre Emile Lapie (fl. 1809 - 1850) were French cartographers and engravers active in the early part of the 19th century. The Lapies were commissioned officers in the French army holding the ranks of Colonel and Capitan, respectively. Alexander enjoyed the title of "First Geographer to the King", and this title appears on several of his atlases. Both father and son were exceptional engravers and fastidious cartographers. Working separately and jointly they published four important atlases, an 1811 Atlas of the French Empire (Alexander), the 1812 Atlas Classique et Universel (Pierre), the Atlas Universel de Geographie Ancienne et Modern (joint issue), and the 1848 Atlas Militaire (Alexander). They also issued many smaller maps and independent issues. All of these are products of exceptional beauty and detail. Despite producing many beautiful maps and atlases, the work of the Lapie family remains largely underappreciated by most modern collectors and map historians. The later 19th century cartographer A. H. Dufour claimed to be a student of Lapie, though it is unclear if he was referring to the father or the son. The work of the Lapie firm, with its precise engraving and informational density, strongly influenced the mid-19th century German commercial map publishers whose maps would eventually dominate the continental market.