1560 Ursina civitas, vulgo Bernensis, ad hunc Christi annum 1549, exarata.
By: Sebastian Münster
Date: 1560 (circa) Basel
Dimensions: 10 x 11.75 inches (25.5 x 30 cm)
This fascinating bird’s eye view woodcut map featuring the city of Bern, Switzerland is from a Latin edition of Sebastian Münster’s Geographia. The title states that the view is of the city in the year 1549. The portion of the city depicted on the map is now called the ‘Old City’. Viewed from the same vantage point, the original city and today’s Old City closely resemble each other.
Housing is depicted in long rows of conjoined buildings with identical roofing. Streets are long. The impression is of a highly organized Roman city having longer rows of housing rather than the square blocks used by Roman city planners. The background shows steep, forested terrain with delineated strips of land suggesting agricultural enterprises.
Bern’s housing in the original city is surrounded by walls with guard towers and water, the usual medieval defensive fortifications, with the Aare River providing natural defense for most of the city. The Old City has survived to such an extent that Münster’s map could still be used for exploring it today.
Farms and small estates are featured in the foreground. Fanciful scrollwork above the city includes a heraldic device and repeats the message of the title above it, including the dating of the city as it appeared in 1549. Latin text on the verso.
Condition: This map is in B condition. Even toning with darker edges showing the size of the wood block. The top margin is cut almost to the plate mark – in this case to the wood block mark. Miniscule hole in the middle of the centerfold. Another hole just above the margin but not in the image at bottom of map. Entire perimeter reinforced with archival material on the verso.
Inventory #12852
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