Rare postal map of the Duchy of Styria by Ignaz Heymann and published in Trieste in 1788 by Johann Torricella.
The map, published as a separate sheet preserved in a delightful paper case, highlights the dense network of communications that crossed Styria at the end of the 18th century, a period of growing importance for the speed and efficiency of postal exchanges. Postal maps were a particular type of map designed to illustrate the routes of postal stagecoaches and post stations, crucial hubs for changing horses, resting coachmen, and sorting mail. At the bottom left is a large decorative cartouche with the title and scale of distances, while at the bottom right a marble slab displays the graphic symbols for reading the map.
Ignaz Heymann (1765-1815) was an Austrian postmaster, publisher, and cartographer active in Italy between the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Heymann was born in Karansebes (in present-day Romania). At the age of 7, he moved with his parents to Milan, where, as a young man, he attended the Jesuit College of Brera. In 1784, he traveled throughout Italy, visiting Florence, Rome, Naples, and Venice, finally settling in Gorizia, where he found work with the local tax regulation commission. He later moved to Trieste, where he found work with the postal service. The Napoleonic occupation of Trieste in 1809 forced him to move again, this time to Vienna, where he resumed working for the postal service. He retired from the postal service in 1811, after 25 years of service. For his distinguished civil service to the Habsburg Empire, he was awarded the Große Goldene Civil-Verdienstmedaille (Grand Gold Medal for Civil Merit). He published numerous maps, including large-format ones, most of which were associated with the postal service. His first cartographic studies appeared in 1797. Numerous maps followed, mostly depicting various parts of the Habsburg Empire and Italy. Heymann died in 1815.
