Cassini Map

The so-called Cassini Map or Carte de France de l'Académie was the world's first map to depict a national territory on the basis of a precise geodetic survey. It used the innovative method of triangulation, which allowed an accurate representation of the curved surface of the earth and was absolutely groundbreaking in the 17th century. The work not only represents a milestone in cartography, but also helped to divide the French territory into 83 equally sized Départements after the French Revolution in order to ensure internal peace. The motivation to create such a precise cartographic work can be traced back to the 17th century, when detailed surveying began under King Louis XIV and Jean-Baptiste Colbert. From 1683, Giovanni Domenico Cassini (Cassini I) was involved in this project, followed by three further generations of the famous family of cartographers. Between 1756 and 1815, Cassini de Thury and his son Jean Dominique Cassini (Cassini III and IV) were mainly responsible for the final publication of a total of 181 plates showing France in its entirety and in smaller sections. The present Queen's Copy in the National Library of France is named after Marie Antoinette and is partly hand-colored.