Aaron Arrowsmith. A Map of the United States of North America... 1796

AARON ARROWSMITH (1750–1823) A Map of the United States of North America, Drawn from a number of Critical Researches by A. Arrowsmith, Geographer Engraved wall map with original hand color, mounted on cartographic linenLondon: A. Arrowsmith, 1796. (First Edition, original issue: Stewart 79a)Sheet size: 49 1/4” x 57”;Frame size: 56” x 63” FIRST EDITION, FIRST ISSUE. WITH MAGNIFICENT & PERFECT ORIGINAL COLOR Arrowsmith’s map was the first English wall map to use the term “United States” to describe the newly independent colonies in North America, and demonstrated the difficulties facing cartographers seeking to identify the enormous concession of lands made by England in the Treaty of Paris. It is often said that the Treaty of Paris in 1783 explicitly recognized the “United States” as a nation. It certainly had that effect, but the language in the treaty reflected a certain ambiguity about what that meant. The three American representatives charged with negotiating the treaty were ap