The 1723 Map

The map

The map shows the Silvershine rising in the northern peaks and running through the centre of the country past Valdoria, Lake Aurelia to the south of the capital, the Luxemburry Alps to the north and east, and the forest to the west. The dotted line is the border as the councils agreed it in 1723; it has not moved.

How it was made

Zevi drew as he went, on paper carried in a leather case that is also in the Archives. Distances were paced or timed on skis; heights were judged by eye and, the Archives note, are mostly wrong. Rivers, passes, and villages are exact. The map was redrawn fair in Valdoria in the spring of 1723 by a copyist whose name is lost.

Reading the map

• The crown beneath Valdoria marks the seat of the Realm
• The ship on Lake Aurelia marks the lake trade with the south
• The compass rose was added by the copyist; Zevi did not use one
• The cartouche reads "The Kingdom of Luxemburry" in the older style; the Realm has never had a king, and the Charter uses Warden

The map today

The original is shown on Unification Day, June 12, and by arrangement with the Keeper of the Archives. The modern National Map is drawn from the same survey lines with the heights corrected.