{"product_id":"old-panoramic-map-of-kazan-russia-by-makhaev-1771-kazanka-flood-kremlin-volga-tatar-slobodas-quays","title":"Old Panoramic Map of Kazan, Russia by Makhaev, 1771: Kazanka flood, Kremlin, Volga, Tatar slobodas, quays","description":"\u003cp\u003eVue de la Ville de Casan du côté du Nord-Ouest prise lors du débordement de la Casanka captures Kazan at a moment of drama and revelation: the Kazanka (Casanka) River in flood, viewed from the northwest, with the city rising beyond the swollen banks. The composition makes the riverscape the organizing principle of the urban panorama, drawing the eye from boats at the foreground to a skyline punctuated by towers, cupolas, and fortified walls. As a city map, it is remarkable for showing not just streets and structures, but how a great Volga metropolis is situated within its hydrology—how water, terrain, and human settlement interlock. The bilingual captions deepen its historical resonance, orienting both Russian and European viewers to a complex frontier city.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe view reads like a topographic essay on Kazan’s setting at the meeting of the Volga and Kazanka. High ground holds the fortified heart of the city, while mercantile quarters and workshops descend toward the floodplain, where sheds, gardens, and landing places yield to the current. Groves of trees and low meadows appear half-submerged, turning familiar margins into temporary lakes. Across the river, the Tatar slobodas—longstanding suburban settlements—are implied by clustered roofs and spires that hint at the city’s layered identities. Without overburdening the eye with street labels, the engraving instead clarifies relationships: river to ridge, market to monastery, ferry to road, demonstrating why this is a singularly instructive and beautiful city view.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDated 1771, the scene doubles as historical testimony, fixing Kazan at a pivotal era when the Volga corridor bound Europe to Siberia and beyond. Flooding here is not mere spectacle; it is a cartographic argument about resilience, siting, and urban form. One sees why quays, causeways, and elevated precincts mattered, and how river traffic threaded the city’s life even in spate—boats tack between copse and bell tower, while inundated fields and banked embankments reveal the seasonal drama that shaped civic planning. For scholars and collectors alike, the plate offers a rare convergence of environmental history and urban portraiture, revealing a metropolis negotiating nature’s reach.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis view belongs to a distinguished suite of early Russian city panoramas along the Volga and into Siberia—an enterprise launched under Empress Anna Ioanovna and unfolded over nearly four decades, with contributions from seven artists and twelve engravers. Figures such as J. C. Berckhan and J. W. Lursenius brought field experience from Siberian expeditions searching overland routes toward North America, while Alexander Ivanovich Svechin later added scenes informed by 1760s surveys of timber resources vital to naval construction. Issued as individual prints, these works are exceptional rarities, often eluding bibliographies and institutional sets. Their dual Russian–French captions positioned them for imperial and European audiences, fusing documentary precision with cultivated taste.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAt the center of this achievement stands Mikhail Ivanovich Makhaev, whose urban engravings set a standard for clarity, proportion, and atmospheric depth. Makhaev excelled at aligning measured perspective with narrative detail—here, the flood becomes both subject and structuring device, revealing the hierarchy of ground and water that defines Kazan. His editorial acumen drew together diverse field artists and engravers into a coherent visual program that chronicled Russia’s urban ascent along its great rivers. For the connoisseur, this is a city map of uncommon power: it does not merely depict Kazan, it explains it—its vantage, its waterways, its neighborhoods, and its enduring poise at the hinge of Europe and Asia.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eStreets and roads on this map\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eNo verified street names visible; the map focuses on the broader urban landscape rather than detailed street listings.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eNotable Features \u0026amp; Landmarks\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe Casanka River\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eVarious architectural structures in Kazan\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eNatural landscape elements (trees, landforms)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eBoat or vessel depicted on the river\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eVisual representation of flooding effects\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHistorical and design context\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDate created: 1771\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eMapmaker\/publisher: Mikhail Ivanovich Makhaev, known for early urban landscape engravings\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ePart of a rare series of early views of Russian cities along the Volga and in Siberia, prized for artistic and historical value\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSeries comprises 34 prints produced over nearly forty years by seven artists and twelve engravers; originally commissioned by Empress Anna Ioanovna\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eContributors include J. C. Berckhan and J. W. Lursenius (Siberian expeditions exploring routes toward North America)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAlexander Ivanovich Svechin added views from 1760s expeditions assessing timber resources for naval construction\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eEach print was issued individually, making surviving examples exceptional rarities often absent from bibliographies and collections\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eEngraved on high-quality Dutch handmade paper with bilingual Russian and French captions\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThematically focused on an urban landscape during flooding, offering 18th-century historical and geographical insight specific to Kazan and the Volga region\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHistorically significant for documenting an evolving city shaped by natural disasters; valuable to collectors and historians studying Russia’s transformation\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\u003cp\u003ePlease double check the images to make sure that a specific town or place is shown on this map. You can also get in touch and ask us to check the map for you.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis map looks great at every size, but I always recommend going for a larger size if you have space. That way you can easily make out all of the details. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis map looks amazing at sizes all the way up to 100in (250cm). If you are looking for a larger map, please \u003ca href=\"\/pages\/contact-us\"\u003eget in touch\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003eThe model in the listing images is holding the undefined version of this map.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe fifth listing image shows an example of my map personalisation service.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIf you’re looking for something slightly different, check out my collection of the \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/all-old-vintage-antique-maps\"\u003ebest old maps\u003c\/a\u003e to see if something else catches your eye.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePlease \u003ca href=\"\/pages\/contact-us\"\u003econtact me\u003c\/a\u003e to check if a certain location, landmark or feature is shown on this map.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis would make a wonderful birthday, Christmas, Father's Day, work leaving, anniversary or housewarming gift for someone from the areas covered by this map.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis map is available as a giclée print on acid free archival matte paper, or you can buy it framed. The frame is a nice, simple black frame that suits most aesthetics. Please get in touch if you'd like a different frame colour or material. My frames are glazed with super-clear museum-grade acrylic (perspex\/acrylite), which is significantly less reflective than glass, safer, and will always arrive in perfect condition.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"The Unique Maps Co.","offers":[{"title":"12x18in (30x45cm) \/ Map","offer_id":58258612748672,"sku":"UM00295842A","price":75.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true},{"title":"12x18in (30x45cm) \/ Framed map","offer_id":58258612781440,"sku":"UM00295843A","price":201.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true},{"title":"12x18in (30x45cm) \/ Framed canvas map","offer_id":58258612814208,"sku":"UM00295844A","price":0.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true},{"title":"14x24in (36x60cm) \/ Map","offer_id":58258612846976,"sku":"UM00295845A","price":140.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true},{"title":"14x24in (36x60cm) \/ Framed map","offer_id":58258612879744,"sku":"UM00295846A","price":307.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true},{"title":"14x24in (36x60cm) \/ Framed canvas map","offer_id":58258612912512,"sku":"UM00295847A","price":0.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true},{"title":"24x36in (60x90cm) \/ Map","offer_id":58258612945280,"sku":"UM00295848A","price":169.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true},{"title":"24x36in (60x90cm) \/ Framed map","offer_id":58258612978048,"sku":"UM00295849A","price":460.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true},{"title":"24x36in (60x90cm) \/ Framed canvas map","offer_id":58258613010816,"sku":"UM00295850A","price":517.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true},{"title":"28x45in (70x114cm) \/ Map","offer_id":58258613043584,"sku":"UM00295851A","price":221.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true},{"title":"28x45in (70x114cm) \/ Framed map","offer_id":58258613076352,"sku":"UM00295852A","price":900.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true},{"title":"28x45in (70x114cm) \/ Framed canvas map","offer_id":58258613109120,"sku":"UM00295853A","price":900.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true},{"title":"28x50in (70x127cm) \/ Map","offer_id":58258613141888,"sku":"UM00295854A","price":402.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true},{"title":"28x50in (70x127cm) \/ Framed map","offer_id":58258613174656,"sku":"UM00295855A","price":1675.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true},{"title":"28x50in (70x127cm) \/ Framed canvas map","offer_id":58258613207424,"sku":"UM00295856A","price":1675.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true},{"title":"37x60in (94x150cm) \/ Map","offer_id":58258613240192,"sku":"UM00295857A","price":536.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true},{"title":"37x60in (94x150cm) \/ Framed map","offer_id":58258613272960,"sku":"UM00295858A","price":2679.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true},{"title":"37x60in (94x150cm) \/ Framed canvas map","offer_id":58258613305728,"sku":"UM00295859A","price":2679.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true},{"title":"39x70in (99x178cm) \/ Map","offer_id":58258613338496,"sku":"UM00295860A","price":881.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true},{"title":"39x70in (99x178cm) \/ Framed map","offer_id":58258613371264,"sku":"UM00295861A","price":3588.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true},{"title":"39x70in (99x178cm) \/ Framed canvas map","offer_id":58258613404032,"sku":"UM00295862A","price":3588.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0257\/0344\/8638\/files\/file_ee0747a4-b2f6-4357-8127-d5a2e4879d5e.jpg?v=1781278651","url":"https:\/\/uniquemaps.ca\/products\/old-panoramic-map-of-kazan-russia-by-makhaev-1771-kazanka-flood-kremlin-volga-tatar-slobodas-quays","provider":"The Unique Maps Co.","version":"1.0","type":"link"}