A pre-Revolutionary War map of the Chesapeake Bay area, engraved by Bellin for the monumental travel narrative, l'Histoire Generale des Voyages. The map shows parts of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia, from Norfolk in the south to Philadelphia in the north. In the bottom right, the title and scale in French miles are enclosed in a decorative baroque cartouche.
Jacques Nicolas Bellin (1703-1772) was a French hydrographer, geographer, and member of the French intellectual group the Philosophes. Bellin was born in Paris. He was hydrographer of France's hydrographic office, member of the Académie de Marine and of the Royal Society of London. Over a 50 year career, he produced a large number of maps of particular interest to the Ministère de la Marine. His maps of Canada and of French territories in North America (New France, Acadia, Louisiana) are particularly valuable. He died at Versailles.