Abraham Ortelius / Jan Baptista Vrients

LG 3766

The Netherlands

"Inferioris Germaniae Provinciarum Nova Descriptio"

Decorative and rare map of the Netherlands and adjacent areas.

Originally coloured copper engraving from an Ortelius' atlas "Typus Orbis Terrarum" edited by Jan Baptista Vrients, Antwerpen 1608, Italian edition page 41, 41,2 x 55,8 cm.

Perfect condition and with a very nice original colouration, paper throughout a little bit brownish.

€ 4.750,-

Decorative and rare map of the Netherlands.

A large and pleasant title cartouche at the upper right shows all 17 coats of arms of the duchies and count's lands the map is divided in.

The sea is decorated with many vessels and some sea-monsters. Beside the title is a large wind rose with detailed descriptions of all directions. A cartouche with four different scales - decorated with a surveyor - we find at the lower right corner.

At the left side there is a table with the number of towns and villages of each of the provinces shown, below there is a legend with the used symbols for towns, villages, castles und monasteries.

Jan Baptista Vrients (1552-1612) was a copper engraver, publisher, and mapseller, who acquired about 1600 stock and plates of Ortelius and de Jode. At the beginning of the 17th century he published some issues of Ortelius' atlas "Theatrum Orbis Terrarum", completed with some of his own maps - like our map of the Netherlands.

This map was published in the issues of 1608(I), 1609(L), and 1612(I and L) - in this form and with Italian (I) or Latin (L) text - with about 250 or 300 items for each issue, at all about 550 for our Italian edition.

Compare the following references:

M. van den Broecke: Ortelius Atlas Maps, 1996, No 59 with Fig.
John Goss: Kartenkunst, Braunschweig 1994, p 105, plate 4.19
Cornelis Koeman: Atlantes Neerlandici, Amsterdam 1967-85, Vol. III.

See also No LG 3866

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