World maps and Celestial

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Richly decorated double hemisphere pictorial map of the moon by Michael Ramus issued by New York bank Merrill Lynch as a promotional hand-out to commemorate the first two manned lunar landings in 1969 on 20 July and 19 November, which were achieved by the Apollo 11 and 12 space missions. As the title implies, it combines accurately drawn and labeled maps of lunar craters and seas with whimsical illustrations. At the center is the Saturn V rocket, which launched the Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins into space. At top depiction of three American presidents – Nixon, Johnson, and Kennedy, whose administrations supported space exploration – soaring above the scene upon the back of a n eagle. From the eagle’s beak, a banner unfurls with astronaut Neil Armstrong’s famous phrase, “One small step for a man… one giant leap for mankind.”
The moon is shown in two hemispheres representing the “Far Side” and the “Near Side” with the Apollo 11 and 12 landings illustrated on the “Near Side,” and the “Far Side” making note of the Russian lunar missions. The hemispheres are rendered with accurate topography while the so-called “seas” are filled with mythical sea creatures. Below the hemispheres are illustrations of various achievements in astronomy and flight, including Galileo observing the moon with a telescope and the transatlantic flights of the Wright Brothers and Charles Lindberg, as well as eccentric images, such as Halloween imagery and Romeo and Juliet (likely a reference to Juliet asking Romeo to “swear not by the moon”). A stock ticker tape stretches across the image as a reminder of Merrill Lynch’s investment opportunities.
At bottom two cartouches describe how 1969 will be remembered and what is to be expected in 1970. One of the most interesting and famous Moon pictorial map. Ref: Hornsby (Picturing America) #158

• Author: Michael Ramus
• Dimension: 36 x 43 cm
• Place of publication: New York
• Year: 1969