Jean-Baptiste Nolin was one of the most successful mapmakers in France. Nolin was well-connected to the leading cosmographers of his day, including V

He combined the decorative flair of Italian maps with the geographical accuracy of French cartography. In 1694 Nolin gained the position of geographer to the Duke of Orléans, Philippe II. His 1700 world map, 

 was thought to be plagiarised. The dispute resulted in a six-year court case where the judge ruled that Nolin must stop printing the map. The case did not harm Nolin’s career and in 1701 he was appointed engraver to King Louis XIV. 

After his death in 1725, his son, Jean-Baptiste published a posthumous atlas of Nolin’s maps in 1783.