OPORTO (PORTO) PORTUGA 1833 S.D.U.K. UNUSUAL ANTIQUE STEEL ENGRAVED CITY MAP IN

Oporto (Porto).

Description: Striking and highly detailed fine unusual 1833 steel engraved map featuring an aerial plan of the city of Oporto (modern-day Porto, Portugal), by the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge. This society was founded by British statesman (Lord Chancellor) Henry Broughman for the purpose of making educational materials available to those of the rapidly expanding reading public who had limited financial means and for those who preferred self-education.
 
This map depicts Porto as it appeared in the third decade of the 19th century, and below the map is a scenic view of the city. Porto dates back to at least Roman times, and remains of various civilizations are found throughout the city, including Celtic, Proto-Celtic, Moorish to name a few. The historical core of the city is a UNESCO designated world heritage site. In the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, the shipyards of Porto became important to the development of the Portuguese fleet, whose discoveries changed the way Europeans viewed themselves and the world.
 
The Portuguese built an empire which depended entirely on its command of the seas, for rather than colonize its new territories, Portugal set up trading depots from West Africa to China, and made little attempt to conquer these lands by force. In 1419 the royal house of Portugal began to subsidize sailors, mapmakers, astronomers, shipbuilders and instrument makers who were interested in discovering new lands. While the majority of these early explorers were Italian, many other nationalities were also financed by the Portuguese court. All were united in their desire to find a way to India. Though they did not succeed, they were able to advance down the west coast of Africa, and thus opened rich trade in gold and slaves. Portuguese mariners eventually made their way to the Spice Islands, opening an entire new world of riches and wealth.
 
Published by Baldwin & Cradock of Paternoster Row, London, for the S.D.U.K. atlas.

The Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge (S.D.U.K.) Atlas was initially issued in parts over several years by Baldwin and Craddock to promote the society's mission of egalitarian self-education. The first S.D.U.K. began appearing in 1829 when the society contracted John Walker to produce the first proofs. The first S.D.U.K maps were produced serially by Baldwin and Craddock and issued in 2 map batches, priced at 2 shillings each. The series, originally anticipated to feature 50 maps, ultimately contained 200 and took over 14 years to produce. The initial production was completed in 1844 when the whole was issued in its first compiled atlas edition. Around 1842, following the 1837 bankruptcy of Baldwin and Craddock, publication of the atlas was taken over by the Society itself, who issued editions in 1838, 1839, 1840, 1841, and 1842. Overburdened by the work of publishing, they then outsourced the publication to Chapman and Hall in 1842. Chapman and Hall produced editions in 1842, 1843, and 1844. Dissatisfied with the quality of Chapman and Hall printing, the Society turned to another publisher, Charles Knight, who issued editions under the auspices of the Society in 1844, 1845, and 1846. In 1846 Knight officially acquired the plates in his own right and reissued in revised editions until 1852, when he sold them to George Cox. Cox in turn sold them to Edward Stanford who published them from 1856 well into the 1860s. The S.D.U.K. Atlas is known for the quantity and quality of its maps. The S.D.U.K. published many maps of areas largely ignored by other publishers. The many city plans incorporated into the atlas are particularly admired and are the highlight of the S.D.U.K.'s long map publishing history. As a whole the S.D.U.K. Atlas was groundbreaking in terms of quality, scope, and being offer at a cost effective price point.

Date: 1833 ( dated )

Dimension: Paper size approx.: cm 41,7 x 35,2

Condition: Very strong and dark impression on good paper. Map uncolored. Small foxing and browning. Conditions are as you can see in the images.

Mapmakers: The "Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge" (1826 - 1848) was a Whiggish organization founded in 1828 at the instigation of idealistic British lord Henry Peter Brougham. The admirable goal of the Society was to distribute useful information via a series of publications to the English working and middle classes. It promoted self-education and the egalitarian sharing of all knowledge. While closely tied to the London University and publishing houses on the order of Baldwin and Cradock, Chapman and Hall, and Charles Knight, the Society failed to achieve its many lofty goals in finally closed its doors in 1848. Most likely the failure of the Society resulted from its publications being too expensive for its intended lower to middle class markets and yet not large and fine enough to appeal to the aristocratic market. Nonetheless, it did manage to publish several extraordinary atlases of impressive detail and sophistication. Their most prominent atlas consisted of some 200 separately issued maps initially published by Baldwin and Cradock and sold by subscription from 1829 to 1844. Afterwards, the Society combined the maps into a single world atlas published under the Chapman and Hall imprint. In its day, this atlas was unprecedented in its quality, scope, and cost effectiveness. Today Society, or S.D.U.K. as it is commonly known, maps are among the most impressive examples of mid-19th century English mass market cartographic publishing available. The S.D.U.K. is especially known for its beautiful and accurately detailed city plans.

Publisher: Baldwin and Cradock (fl. c. 1810 - 1860) were London based publishers working in the early to mid 19th century. They are best known for their publication of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge's ground breaking subscription atlas. They also published John Thomson's magnificent New General Atlas from 1814 - c. 1820. In addition to their cartographic corpus, the firm had wide ranging publishing interests in many other areas, including books, broadsides, and an investment in Blackwoods Magazine. They had their offices at 47 Paternoster Row, London, England. This firm also published under the imprint Baldwin, Cradock, and Joy and Cradock and Joy.