IRLANDIA

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Charming map of Ireland with the North at right from the Mercator Hondius "Atlas Minor" published in Amsterdam in 1648 at Jannsonius with german text on verso. In 1607 Jodocus Hondius published a reduced size version of Mercator's "Atlas", itself suitably titled "Atlas Minor". The maps were copied from those of the great cartographer Mercator of around 1580-90 or were reductions of Hondius' own maps of 1606.

Almost 20 years later Joannes Janssonius commissioned this new set of copperplates to be engraved by Pieter Van Den Keere (Kaerius) and Abraham Goos. These maps were elegantly designed with decorative title cartouches, finely engraved and surprisingly detailed for their dimensions.

Excellent hand colour

Very good condition.

Koeman "Atlantes Neerlandici"

code : M4275

Cartographer : GERARD MERCATOR

Date : 1610 / 1628 Amsterdam

Size : 14*19cms

availability : Sold

Price : Sold

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Gerard MERCATOR

Originally a student of philosophy Gerard Mercator (1512-1594). He became an expert in land surveying and cartography, as well as a skilled engraver.His first maps were published in 1537 (Palestine), and 1538 (a map of the world), although his main occupation at this time was globe-making. He later moved to Duisburg, in Germany, where he produced his outstanding wall maps of Europe and of Britain. In 1569 he published his masterpiece, the twenty-one-sheet map of the world, constructed on what is now known as Mercator's projection.

It was during this period, while teaching cosmography at Duisburg, that Mercator realised the pressing need for a modern collection of maps to supersede the Ptolemaic atlases. This project was gradually expanded to be a complete description of the Universe, both heaven and earth, with other volumes on the Creation, Genealogy and History and a Chronology. The description of the earth was to be in two parts, a modern geography and a Ptolemaic atlas, a massive and over-ambitious project. In fact, only the Chronology and the Ptolemaic Geographia were completed in his lifetime, and it was left to his son, Rumold, to complete and publish the world atlas in 1595. Entitled Atlas, sive Cosmographicae Meditationes de Fabrica Mundi, this was the first time the name "Atlas" was applied to a bound collection of maps, and, like Mercator's projection, has remained in everyday use to this day.

After Rumold's death in 1599, the plates for the atlas were published by Gerard Jr. Following his death in 1604, the printing stock was bought at auction by Jodocus Hondius, and re-issued well into the seventeenth century.

The Atlas Minor was reprinted,reengraved by many 16th century Dutch cartographers including Cloppenberg, Jansson etc.