1580 Neuw Griechenlandt mit andern anstossenden Landern…
By: Sebastian Münster
Date: 1580 (circa) Basel
Dimensions: 12.5 x 14 inches (31.8 x 35.6 cm)
This attractive woodcut map depicting Greece, along with regions of some surrounding countries, is from a German language edition of Münster’s Cosmographia, one of the most influential geographical works of the sixteenth century. The map features not only mainland Greece but its archipelagos with Ionian and Aegean islands as well.
This edition of the map varies significantly from its first edition (1540), revealing the strong modernizing influence of Abraham Ortelius, who continued to publish the Cosmographia decades after the death of Münster in 1552. It also reveals a departure from the Fraktur script initially favoured and used by Münster. It is replaced with the elegant script developed by Gerard Mercator, which came to be universally accepted throughout Europe for use in maps and other works of an academic and/or scientific nature.
The northwest corner of the map features the Adriatic Sea and its Balkan coastline on the east, with the heel of Italy depicted on the west coast of the sea. The northernmost point on the east coast of the Adriatic is labeled Juliana. This region has been inhabited for millennia, and under the Romans was divided into three distinct government provinces.
Topography is highly detailed, including mountain ranges, river systems, cities and their names, towns, fortified positions, along with numerous churches throughout the territory. The map extends to Constantinople in the upper right, and includes much of the Anatolian side of the Aegean, extending southward some distance beyond ancient Smyrna (modern Izmir). The islands of the Cyclades are depicted with their toponyms.
An inset in the lower left describes the region and the peoples who inhabit it. The Adriatic is embellished with a vessel heading eastward at full sail, and a curious sea monster off the southeastern shore of Italy.The recto features an ornamental vignette along with the abbreviated title of the map written in elaborate script.
Condition: This map is in B+ condition. Fading in places. Title and decorative vignette on verso are visible on the recto.
Inventory #12928
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