Leonardo da Vinci's Map of Imola (1502)

Town plan of Imola c. 1502, Pencil, chalk, pen and wash on paper, 440 x 602 mm, Museo Vinciano

Une carte magnifique...
A splendid map...

"It was during Leonardo's time in Florence (1501—1507) that the magnificent maps — reckoned to be amongst the first achievements of modern cartography - were created. There is disagreement with regard to the town plan of Imola as to whether Leonardo produced the map himself or simply made slight alterations to an older map dating from 1473. A survey map (Royal Library, Windsor) of his survives which suggests that Leonardo's town plan was developed by him independently. He may, though, have used the older plan in order to compare his own measurements with it."

Source: Web gallery of art