Jean Baptiste Bourgnignon D Anville. a French geographer, born at Paris in 1697, died there in 1782. At the age of 15 he published a map of ancient Greece. In his 22d year he was appointed royal geographer. He published 211 maps and plans, and 78 memoires. One of his best maps is that of ancient Egypt. His Orbis Veteribus Notus and his Orbis Romanus have become standard guides for students of ancient history. His "General Atlas," his Atlas Antiquus Major, and his maps of Gaul, Italy, and Greece during the middle ages, are celebrated. In 1779 the French government purchased for the royal library his large collection, which consisted of 10,500 maps.