Herman Moll (1654-1732), This Map of North America, According to Ye Newest and Most Exact Observations (The Codfish Map)

Herman Moll (1654-1732) This Map of North America, According to Ye Newest and Most Exact Observations (The Codfish Map) c. 1720 Engraving with outline hand-coloring Sheet size: 23 3/4 x 38 1/2 in. Herman Moll’s celebrated Codfish Map is one of the most recognizable and visually engaging maps of early eighteenth-century North America. Extending from Greenland and the North Atlantic southward through the Caribbean and toward the northern coast of South America, the map depicts British North America alongside neighboring French and Spanish possessions. Ten inset views of important colonial harbors, including Boston, New York, Havana, Veracruz, and Cartagena, emphasize the commercial and strategic importance of the Atlantic world. The map’s distinctive name derives from its richly engraved vignette illustrating the Newfoundland cod fishery, showing the stages of catching, curing, and drying cod for shipment to European markets. Published in London as part of Moll’s influential atlas The World Described, the map reflects Britain’s growing imperial ambitions and the fierce competition among European powers for control of North American territory and maritime trade. The Newfoundland fishery was a particularly valuable economic resource, and Moll’s prominent depiction of the industry underscores its importance to British colonial prosperity. The map also incorporates information on trade winds and the routes of Spanish treasure fleets, revealing the interconnected networks of commerce, navigation, and imperial rivalry that shaped the Atlantic world. Combining expansive geographical coverage with elaborate engraving and compelling commercial imagery, Moll’s Codfish Map stands as both an important document of early eighteenth-century cartography and a striking visual celebration of the economic forces that helped shape colonial North America.