[Fools Cap Map] Afbeeldinge Van't Zeer Vermaarde Eiland Geks-Kop

Print. Copper-plate engraving. Amsterdam: 1720. Image measures 6 1/8" x 9", with text 11 1/2" x 9". Sheet measures 15" x 11 1/2" This satirical persuasive map depicts the island of "Geks-Kop", rendered as a 'fools head', or man in a 'fool's cap.' The map is an allegorical reference to the economic crash caused by the French Compagnie d'Occident, often referred to as the Mississippi Company, following the burst of the Mississippi Bubble. Surrounding the head are islands labeled Poverty, Despair, and Sorrow. Rivers serve to outline facial features, and place names include 'Leugenburg' (Town of Lies), 'Bedriegers Stadt' (City of Cheaters), Gekkendam (Crazy-dam), etc. In 1719, John Law, a Scottish financier, created a bubble in the shares of the Mississippi Company by touting the economic potential of the French colony of Louisiana. Also there was great demand for the bank notes of the Banque General Privee, the French bank that sponsored the Mississippi Company. In 1720, the bubble burst on the stock of the Mississippi Company and the bank notes, when investors became doubtful of their value. This sheet was published in 'Het Groote Tafereel Der Dwaasheid', or 'The Great Mirror of Folly' - A renowned monument for the speculative mania of 1720: The great mirror of folly, showing the rise, progress, and downfall of the bubble in stocks and windy speculation in France, England, and the Netherlands. It constitutes a collection of mostly satirical plates on the operations of John Law in France and the South Sea Bubble in England, together with the text of the charters of speculative companies in Holland and a number of satirical plays and comedies published during the bubble. P. J. Mode 1019.01.…