"A View of Savannah as it stood, the 29th of March, 1734...To the Honble. The Trustees for establishing the Colony of Georgia in America; This view of the Town of Savannah is humbly dedicated by their Honours?", inscribed in plate "Obliged and most obedient Servant/Peter Gordon", inscribed lower right "P. Gordon Inv.", and lower left "P. Fourdrinier Sculp", engraving on double-page laid paper, 18 x 22-1/2 in. (page); modern wood frame, linen covered backing board and mat, tacked at points on edges verso to presumed acid free mat with unidentified tape, trimmed within plate with some loss to parts of text lettering at top and and bottom, light toning, small tears at edges with the longest being 3/8 in. at left edge, additional separation at top and bottom central join, light toning, handling grime, crease lower right corner. Notes: The importance of this view to the lexicon of American historical maps in general or its importance in understanding southern material culture and history cannot be overstated. Borrowing from earlier Dutch bird's eye views including as those by Johannes Kip, this view of the plan for Savannah was designed by James Edward Oglethorpe, then on the Board of Trustees for the establishing of the Colony of Georgia. Oglethorpe designed the view based on the concept of centralized public squares flanked by precisely measured lots. The key to centralized public buildings is found below as well as Oglethorpe?s Tent, one?s first contact with the colony. The harbor front is reminiscent of views popular at the time such as those of New York and Charles Town. This view was one of the first accurate colonial views. It is set apart by the interpretation of the American wilderness surrounding the new settlement with the meticulous detail of dense trees and a central path leading off into the distance. Most prior views of America were based on European interpretations of how land should be laid out including parceled gardens and outlying farm plots. Also unique to this plan are parcels with buildings, mostly to the right, that were to be given to the area?s first Jewish settlers. Other intrigue surrounds the view in the rather boastful credit given to the ?Obliged and most Obedient Servant Peter Gordon?, who was simply the courier for the drawing executed by Noble Jones. Gordon was to deliver the design to George Jones in London, thence to the trustees. It was then to be engraved by Paul Fourdrinier. Margaret Beck Pritchard of Colonial Williamsburg states that 'recent scholarship has revealed there were two states of this engraving, one being the second state with French text on the same line as Gordon?s name (see Brunk Auctions May 29, 2010, The Thomas Gray Collection, lot # 6) and one without being the first state'. Very few examples of Gordon's view are known. Currently there are eleven copies known to be in public collections: MESDA, Winston-Salem, North Carolina; Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division, Washington DC; Boston Public Library, Boston, Massachusetts; Duke University, Durham, North Carolina; Georgia Hargrett Library, University of Georgia, Athens; Historical Society of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Clements Library, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor; Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, Williamsburg, Virginia; Winterthur Museum & Country Estate, Winterthur, Delaware. Exhibited: Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., [Wilderness], October 8-November 14, 1971, No. 92 Literature: William P. Cumming, [The Southeast In Early Maps], University of North Carolina Press, Chapel Hill & London, third edition, 1998, No. 219, pp. 237-238.. Provenance: Carl and Alleen Feiss, Washington, D.C, historic preservation planner and consultant to the city of Savannah and the Historic Savannah Foundation. He completed a preservation plan for the city and a city-wide architectural inventory published in 1968. This engraving was a token of gratitude from the city of Savannah; A Private Massachusetts Collection tacked at points on edges verso to presumed acid free mat with unidentified tape, trimmed within plate with some loss to parts of text lettering at top and and bottom, light toning, small tears at edges with the longest being 3/8 in. at left edge, additional separation at top and bottom central join, light toning, handling grime, crease lower right corner