Copper engraving, image size 180x225 mm, hand-painted. Taken from “Atlas celeste de Flamstèed aprouvè par l'academie royale des science, et publiè sous le privilege de cette compagnie” by J.N.Fortin, published in Paris, originally printed in 1729. It shows a detailed star chart of the constellation Cetus and nearby constellations. John Flamsteed was Royal Astronomer to King Charles II, promoter and director of the Greenwich Observatory. By cataloguing over 3,000 stars, he surpassed Edmund Halley and Isaac Newton. He carried out in-depth and meticulous studies of the heavens, but refused to publish his works, despite the insistence of his colleagues, including Halley and Newton themselves. In the end, his life's work was published posthumously in 1728, in what is now an extremely rare work. Our subsequent French edition was hugely successful and is perhaps the most popular French-language celestial atlas of the 18th century. Excellent copy.