Old Topographic Map of South East France by Bartholomew, 1922: Marseille, Nice, Corsica, Rhône Delta, Maritime Alps

France - South-Eastern Section; Corsica; Marseille presents the Mediterranean threshold of France with a clarity and poise that epitomize The Times Atlas at its interwar zenith. Issued in 1922 as part of the second issue of the groundbreaking 1920 edition—the first to showcase John Bartholomew’s mapping—it supersedes the venerable Andree plates of 1895 with luminous hypsometric tints on land and graded bathymetry at sea. Shipping routes are traced with measured distances, knitting together ports and islands across the inland sea. The collaboration between The Times, the Edinburgh Geographical Institute, and John George Bartholomew yields a disciplined, modern cartography: beautifully composed, scrupulously sourced, and purpose-built to communicate the complex interplay of topography, coastline, and maritime movement in southeastern France and Corsica.

On the mainland, the relief shading elegantly narrates the descent from the Maritime Alps to the Riviera, then westward into the broad, light-washed littoral of the Gulf of Lion. The Rhône delta and the Camargue emerge as a mosaic of water and lowlands, while the Durance and Var trace their courses from mountain to sea. Urban names anchor the narrative: Marseille, industrial and cosmopolitan; Toulon, sheltered in its famous roadstead; Nice, poised on the curve of the Baie des Anges; Avignon and Arles, guardians of the Rhône’s cultural corridor. A dedicated larger scale for Marseille (1:150,000) tightens the focus on the great port’s approaches and neighboring coast, sharpening the reader’s sense of the city’s maritime geometry.

Corsica rises from the page as a mountain set in the sea—its central spine marching from the massifs around Monte Cinto toward the wind-swept finger of Cap Corse. The hypsometric palette picks out ridges and valleys with uncommon subtlety, while the eastern plains and the scalloped western gulfs reveal contrasting physiographies. Ajaccio commands its amphitheatre of hills; Bastia looks north across busy waters toward the Ligurian approaches. Around the island, bathymetric tints step outward into deeper blues, emphasizing shelves, basins, and the constricted passages that funnel traffic, notably the narrows toward the Strait of Bonifacio. Marked routes with distances bind the island to mainland harbors, underscoring the strategic and commercial lifelines that defined the era.

Bartholomew’s technique is the quiet hero of the composition. Hypsometric tints are layered to convey gradient rather than mere altitude, allowing the eye to read slope and exposure at a glance. At sea, bathymetric shading turns the Gulf of Lion and the Ligurian fringes into a legible relief of banks and deeps, invaluable for understanding harbors and lanes. Shipping routes are inscribed with measured legs that translate geography into movement, while lucid typography and a restrained color hierarchy keep information legible under dense detail. Notes recording corrections adopted since the 1920 issue attest to editorial vigilance and a living atlas tradition—responsive to new surveys, updated nomenclature, and the practical needs of readers.

John George Bartholomew, long celebrated for elevating the art and science of mapping, brought to The Times Atlas a synthesis of rigorous compilation and painterly design. Working through the Edinburgh Geographical Institute, he standardized hypsometric color schemes and fused physical geography with navigational intelligence in a way that anticipated modern thematic cartography. His replacement of the nineteenth-century Andree base with fresh, meticulously edited plates set a new benchmark for accuracy and elegance, making The Times Atlas a byword for authority. This sheet distills that achievement: a map that educates as it enchants, preserving the early twentieth-century Mediterranean world—its ports, mountains, deltas, and sea-roads—with a precision that continues to reward close study.

Cities and towns on this map

• Marseille (Modern population: ~870,000)
• Nice (Modern population: ~350,000)
• Toulon (Modern population: ~170,000)
• Avignon (Modern population: ~90,000)
• Arles (Modern population: ~53,000)
• Ajaccio (Modern population: ~70,000)
• Bastia (Modern population: ~43,000)

Notable Features & Landmarks

• Relief depicted through hypsometric tints
• Bathymetric tints for surrounding waters
• Marked shipping routes and distances
• Scale for Marseille area (1:150,000)
• Correction notes from the 1920 edition

Historical and design context

• Title: France - South-Eastern Section; Corsica; Marseille
• Date of creation: 1922
• Produced for The Times Atlas in collaboration with the Edinburgh Geographical Institute and John Bartholomew & Co.
• Second issue of the 1920 edition; first to include Bartholomew’s maps, improving on Andree’s 1895 plates
• John George Bartholomew renowned for high-quality, detailed mapping that advanced cartography
• Clear, structured layout and artistic elements enhancing usability and aesthetic appeal
• Exemplifies The Times Atlas’s high standard and continuity in reliable cartographic resources
• Regions shown: southeastern France and the island of Corsica

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