Now this is a map! This is just superb cartography: detailed, clear and lovely to look at. I love the way that brown is used for mountainous features, and a light blue is used for water features – it allows this information to be visible, but it doesn’t compete with the overlaid railroad lines. The map is packed with other information as well – note the three rail gauges in use in Argentina at the time.

One thing I do find a bit disturbing is the way that past librarians recorded information about the map – physical dimensions, scale calculations, library collection numbers, etc. – in pencil on the map itself. It’s okay if it’s a discreet annotation in the margin, but this map has more than the norm.

Here’s a detail for the area around Buenos Aires – just gorgeous:

Source: Norman B. Leventhal Map Center/Boston Public Library