COLLECTING ANTIQUE MAPS ū A BEGINNERĘS GUIDE
By: vintagemap
COLLECTING ANTIQUE MAPS ū A BEGINNER'S GUIDE
By Neil Street, founder, VintageMaps.Com
California wasn't always attached to the west coast of the
North American continent. It used to be an island. At least,
that's what mapmakers, mostly European, believed for about
100 years, from around 1650 to 1750. So that's how they drew
it on their maps.
The "Island of California," as it is commonly called, is
just one of the innumerable collecting niches that are
possible in the increasingly popular field of antique map
collecting.
Antique map collecting is a tradition that goes back
hundreds of years, which is perhaps one reason why there is
such an enormous amount of material, from the affordable to
the prohibitively expensive, in circulation today. Two
reasons for the popularity of antique map collecting are
that antique maps appeal to a broad spectrum of people (for
a variety of reasons) and they make very attractive framed
pieces that can be enjoyed by many.
The wide range of antique maps available today means that a
novice can easily enter the field, although hopefully armed
with a little caution and common sense. The best place to
begin is with some reading. Two excellent books for the
beginning collector are Collecting Old Maps by Francis J.
Manasek, and Collecting Antique Maps: An Introduction to the
History of Cartography, by Jonathan Potter. Both are
available by visiting VintageMaps.Com at
http://www.vintagemaps.com
Armed with a little guidance from these excellent books, the
new collector is likely to focus on a particular niche
within the map collecting field. This is an important step,
since it is by narrowing the focus that a beginner is able
to most quickly gain the necessary expertise for
successful, and enjoyable, collecting. However, the new
collector should also take some time to look around before
jumping into a chosen area. There are as many collecting
"areas" as there are collectors, and a little time and
effort spent exploring the field may lead to surprising and
unique choices.
What can a person expect to pay for an antique map? The
price range is as wide, or wider, than almost every other
field of antique collecting. Perfectly acceptable antique
maps can be had for as little as $50. For those with a deep
pocket, rare or hard-to-find maps can easily run into five
or six figures. With the relatively low cost of entry,
antique map collecting is an ideal choice for many
individuals, combining wide opportunity for research and
learning (history, geography, art, engraving, printing,
politics, to name but a few) with the opportunity to display
one's prizes in an attractive way. And for those who truly
"catch the bug," antique map collecting can become a passion
that is limited only by the imagination.
Neil Street is the owner of VintageMaps.Com, which he
founded in 1997. His website, an online destination for the
antique map and antique print enthusiast, is at
http://www.vintagemaps.com Send email to
ncstreet@... He can also be reached at
(203)762-3474.
This article is free for republishing
Article Source: http://www.articlealley.com
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