Prints of our hand-made Washington, D.C. map are now for sale at
artmapmaker.com. Washington, D.C. is a unique American city in many respects.
It is our nation’s capital in which the Father of Our Country George Washington
had a personal hand in site selection and design. The location was central to our
new nation, sitting between the northern and southern states, and standing at the
confluence of rivers that accessed the western frontier. The terrain of forested,
rolling hills was utilized by its original designer Pierre L’Enfant to highlight our
institutions and departments of government. L’Enfant, who referred to himself as
Peter after coming to fight in the Revolutionary War, was Washington’s right-hand
man in many respects and received the charge of designing the capital in the early
days of the republic.
L’Enfant used the designs of the great European capitals as a template, but
modified them to make a uniquely American city plan. While the European
capitals placed royal residences in the choicest locations, L’Enfant chose the
prominent hills and other vantage points for our governmental centers. He
employed diagonal streets with circles spaced at major intersections to display
monuments honoring our heroes and heritage. These features are unique in the
USA and make the city the stirring physical form that it is.
Our map is large format and large scale showing the central city including major
landmarks and memorials. The green spaces are evident with the National Mall
being a “village green” for our nation. The cross-hatch pattern of streets is
strikingly evident, and the diagonal boulevards named after the states give
elegance to the pattern.
As with all our maps, Washington, D.C., is hand-made using techniques of pen-and-ink, mechanical lettering and charcoal coloring to yield a handsome, dramatic map fit to grace any wall.