{"product_id":"old-map-of-south-western-asia-by-bartholomew-1922-wwi-mandates-persian-gulf-shipping-routes-conic-projection","title":"Old Map of Southwest Asia \u0026 Middle East by Bartholomew, 1922: WWI mandates, Shipping Routes, Hormuz, Suez","description":"\u003cp\u003eSouth-western Asia, the 1922 regional plate by J. G. Bartholomew for The Edinburgh Geographical Institute and John Bartholomew \u0026amp; Son, Ltd., captures a world recalibrating after the First World War. The title alone signals the sweep: from the Anatolian highlands and the Levant to the Persian Gulf, the Arabian Peninsula, and the northwestern marches of the Indian subcontinent. Bartholomew’s hallmark balance of science and elegance frames a dense tableau of relief, rivers, and frontiers, all keyed to the commercial sea lanes that knotted empire and exchange together. In the manner of the celebrated Times atlas series, this map compresses vast historical forces into lucid symbology—color-banded sovereignties, measured maritime distances, and exacting place-names—that reward close, inquisitive reading.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBartholomew’s cartography marked a decisive turn toward analytical clarity, and this sheet exemplifies it. Relief is rendered with calibrated spot heights that punctuate the Taurus and Zagros ranges, the Elburz, and the plateaus edging the deserts, letting altitude and structure read at a glance. Subtle, vibrant tints differentiate terrain and polity without overwhelming legibility, while a carefully calculated conic projection holds forms true across latitudes from the Levantine littoral to the Indus frontier. The engraving’s hierarchy—capitals in assertive type, secondary towns in refined script, features annotated with judicious notes—embodies the Bartholomew ethos. An ornate early twentieth‑century cartouche anchors the composition, signaling both authority and artisanal pride.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMaritime intelligence threads the sheet. Main shipping routes arc from Suez down the Red Sea to Aden, then eastward along the monsoon corridors toward the Strait of Hormuz, Basra, Karachi, and Bombay, each leg crisply notated with sailing distances. Cross‑Gulf connectors, feeder lines along the Arabian littoral, and approaches to Bushehr and Bandar Abbas underscore how sea power and commerce animated the region’s ports. These plotted pathways transform the map into a navigator’s schematic—less a static portrait than a choreography of motion—linking coaling stops, entrepôts, and chokepoints into an intelligible network. The result is a document attuned to the practicalities of travel and trade as much as to the scholarly ordering of space.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEqually compelling is the political palimpsest of 1922. Bartholomew’s contrasting washes and boundary lines delineate mandates and emergent states: Iraq assembled under British auspices, Palestine and Transjordan administered from the west bank of the Jordan, and Syria and Lebanon under French authority. Anatolia appears amid nationalist consolidation that would soon crystallize as modern Turkey, while Persia retains its historical nomenclature even as oil and reform stir its provinces. Across the Arabian Peninsula the cartography records a mosaic—Hejaz along the Red Sea, the ascendant Nejd inland, Oman on the southeast, and the Gulf sheikhdoms and protectorates strung along the littoral, including Kuwait, Bahrain, and Qatar. Dashed or finely stepped lines judiciously convey unsettled or newly negotiated frontiers without presuming finality.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe physical geography is rendered with equal scholarship. The Tigris and Euphrates braid through Mesopotamia toward the Shatt al‑Arab; the Karun and Karkheh drain Persia’s Zagros; and the Indus system’s upper reaches gather on the map’s eastern verge. Deserts—the Syrian steppe, the Nefud, and the vast Rub’ al Khali—press against irrigated plains, their edges expressed with tonal restraint. Notes and labels seed the landscape with historical memory—Nineveh and Ur on the rivers, Persepolis near the Iranian plateau—while mountain passes and plateaus hint at caravan corridors far older than steamship routes. In uniting natural form, human movement, and political change, Bartholomew produces a synoptic portrait of south‑western Asia at a pivotal moment—lucid, authoritative, and alive with context.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCountries and regions on this map\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eMiddle Eastern countries (specific names not provided)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ePersian Gulf\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eArabian Peninsula\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAreas within modern-day Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Turkey, Syria, and parts of the Indian subcontinent.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eNotable Features \u0026amp; Landmarks\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eRelief Representation: Spot heights showcasing elevations across the landscape.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eShipping Routes: Clearly marked maritime pathways.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ePolitical Boundaries: Borders delineating countries and territories, often in contrasting colors.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eGeographical Features: Major rivers, mountain ranges, and significant topographical elements.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDistance Markings: Indications of distances relevant to navigation and regional geography.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAnnotations: Notes and labels providing historical context for locations.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCartouche Design: An ornate title block typical of early 20th-century map design.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHistorical and design context\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCreation Year: 1922\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eMapmaker\/Publisher: J. G. John George Bartholomew; The Edinburgh Geographical Institute and John Bartholomew \u0026amp; Son, Ltd., London.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eContext about the Mapmaker: Bartholomew’s work marked a significant transition in cartography, especially in The Times atlas series, employing advanced techniques for relief representation and accuracy.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDesign\/Style Context: Detailed annotations, relief illustrations, and vibrant color usage indicative of early 20th-century cartographic practice and Bartholomew’s style.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHistorical Significance: Captures trade routes and the geopolitical climate of southwestern Asia in the 1920s, reflecting a shift toward greater cartographic accuracy and detail.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\u003cp\u003ePlease double check the images to make sure that a specific town or place is shown on this map. You can also get in touch and ask us to check the map for you.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis map looks great at every size, but I always recommend going for a larger size if you have space. That way you can easily make out all of the details. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis map looks amazing at sizes all the way up to 70in (180cm). If you are looking for a larger map, please \u003ca href=\"\/de\/pages\/contact-us\"\u003eget in touch\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003ePlease note: the labels on this map are hard to read if you order a map that is 16in (40cm) or smaller. The map is still very attractive, but if you would like to read the map easily, please buy a larger size.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe model in the listing images is holding the 16x20in (40x50cm) version of this map.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe fifth listing image shows an example of my map personalisation service.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIf you’re looking for something slightly different, check out my collection of the \u003ca href=\"\/de\/collections\/all-old-vintage-antique-maps\"\u003ebest old maps\u003c\/a\u003e to see if something else catches your eye.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePlease \u003ca href=\"\/de\/pages\/contact-us\"\u003econtact me\u003c\/a\u003e to check if a certain location, landmark or feature is shown on this map.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis would make a wonderful birthday, Christmas, Father's Day, work leaving, anniversary or housewarming gift for someone from the areas covered by this map.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis map is available as a giclée print on acid free archival matte paper, or you can buy it framed. The frame is a nice, simple black frame that suits most aesthetics. Please get in touch if you'd like a different frame colour or material. My frames are glazed with super-clear museum-grade acrylic (perspex\/acrylite), which is significantly less reflective than glass, safer, and will always arrive in perfect condition.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"The Unique Maps Co.","offers":[{"title":"12x16in (30x40cm) \/ Map","offer_id":57855602098560,"sku":"UM00272957A","price":76.0,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true},{"title":"12x16in (30x40cm) \/ Framed map","offer_id":57855602131328,"sku":"UM00272958A","price":205.0,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true},{"title":"12x16in (30x40cm) \/ Framed canvas map","offer_id":57855602164096,"sku":"UM00272959A","price":0.0,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true},{"title":"A3 (297x420mm) \/ Map","offer_id":57855602196864,"sku":"UM00272960A","price":76.0,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true},{"title":"A3 (297x420mm) \/ Framed map","offer_id":57855602229632,"sku":"UM00272961A","price":205.0,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true},{"title":"A3 (297x420mm) \/ Framed canvas 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