Old Map of Monaco

The 1898 plan presents the Principality of Monaco as a compact but highly developed Mediterranean city-state. Rather than concentrating only on the old fortified town, it maps the three principal urban quarters of the period: Monaco-Ville on the rocky promontory, La Condamine around the harbour and Monte-Carlo to the east.

Map Details

Original title: Principauté de Monaco Cartographer: C. Gillot, Paris Date: 1898 Publication context: Official plan of the Principality of Monaco Area shown: Monaco and its immediate Mediterranean coastline Map type: Detailed urban and administrative plan Features shown: Monaco-Ville, La Condamine, Monte-Carlo, the Prince’s Palace, harbour, public buildings, gardens, streets and coastal contours

The map’s numbered key identifies monuments and public establishments throughout the principality. The Prince’s Palace, cathedral, government buildings, museums, churches, schools, hotels and telegraph facilities are all integrated into the street plan, allowing the map to be read as both a city guide and an official record.

Monaco-Ville occupies the historic rock at the southern centre of the sheet, with its dense medieval streets and prominent public buildings. Below it, La Condamine surrounds the port and the Rade de Monaco. Monte-Carlo is shown as a more spacious district of avenues, gardens, villas and substantial public buildings, reflecting the resort development that had transformed Monaco during the nineteenth century.

The plan also records the changing coastline. Harbour walls, quays, rocks, beaches and underwater contours are carefully drawn around Port Hercule, Monaco-Ville and the eastern shore. The coastal detail gives the image particular depth and shows how closely the principality’s urban life was tied to the Mediterranean.

A detailed street index appears across the upper part of the sheet, while conventional signs distinguish government property, military areas, religious buildings, gardens, railways, roads and other features. This combination of visual detail and written reference makes the map unusually informative for its size.

The date is significant. By 1898, Monte-Carlo had become an international centre of tourism, finance and entertainment, while the older quarters of Monaco retained their historic character. The map captures these contrasting identities in a single carefully engraved plan: the palace and old town, the working harbour of La Condamine and the grand avenues and gardens of Monte-Carlo.