Americae Nova Tabula
| Reference: | S48883 |
| Author | Willem Janszoon BLAEU |
| Year: | 1618 ca. |
| Zone: | The Americas |
| Printed: | Amsterdam |
| Measures: | 550 x 410 mm |
€4,000.00
| Reference: | S48883 |
| Author | Willem Janszoon BLAEU |
| Year: | 1618 ca. |
| Zone: | The Americas |
| Printed: | Amsterdam |
| Measures: | 550 x 410 mm |
€4,000.00
Description
One of the best known and sought after seventeenth century maps of America. Blaeu's famous carte a figure map of America is regarded as a high point in Dutch cartography.
When first published, around 1618 as a separate issue, the map summarised the most up-to-date cartography and influenced numerous other map publications until mid-century. The publisher, Willem Janszoon, adopted the name Blaeu to avoid confusion with Jan Janszoon and altered his own name on the 3rd state of the map beginning in 1621. The decorative side panels include vivid representations of Native Americans from Virginia, Florida, California (Nove Albions) and other areas in characteristic dress. The panels across the top border offer nine city views including Rio de Janeiro, Mexico City and Havana. California is still shown as a peninsula: only one Great Lake is seen.
Developing colonies can be seen along the eastern seaboard of North America, the French in Canada and the English in Virginia (the Jamestown settlement). The results of further exploration by the Spanish along the California coast are also cited on the map.
Willem Janszoon Blaeu, started in 1599 his business as a builder of globes and astronomical instruments in Amsterdam. In 1630, after buying some plates of the Mercator atlas from Jodocus Hondius II, he was able to publish a volume of 60 maps under the title Atlantis Appendix. Five years later, he published the first two volumes of his atlas Atlas Novus or Theatrum Orbis Terrarum, in six books. After his death, Joan (Johannes) continued his father's work, completing the entire six-volume Atlas Novus series around 1655. He was also the author of an Atlas Maior sive Cosmographia Blaviana, in 12 volumes published in 1662 -72.
“Willem Janszoon, or Blaeu as he was later to be known, had been issuing separately published maps since 1604. The only atlases he was producing at this time were of the sea. Following the publication of his wall maps of the continents in 1608, one would have expected to see shortly afterwards single sheet versions. However, it was not until 1617 that Blaeu undertook such a project. The date of issue is taken from the Europe in the set.
Similar to the wall map in geography, it does not include many of the cartographical advances made between 1608 and 1617. One of the notable exceptions, however, is the inclusion of Henry Hudson's Bay. The map's popularity rests on its association with arguably the greatest Dutch cartographer of all time. This is one of only a few maps relating to North America by Blaeu. Its visual appeal is enhanced greatly by the inclusion of three decorative borders. The one above contains nine plans or views of towns. The side panels each contain five portraits of figures. These are drawn from various sources, including Theodore de Bry.
In the same year the results of Jacob le Maire and Willem Cornelisz Schouten's voyage around Cape Horn became known. They showed that Tierra del Fuego was an island and not connected to the unknown southern continent. Owing to law suits that were filed between the Australian Company and the Dutch East India Company, Blaeu was legally barred from incorporating this new information on his maps and globes in July 1617. This restriction was not lifted until August of the following year. Blaeu immediately updated this work to include Fretum le Maire and State landt. He also removed the coastline of TERRA AUSTRALIS INCOGNITA east of the title cartouche, mysteriously leaving the name behind. Therefore state 1 of the plate, having a life of at most about eighteen months, is extremely rare. Indeed, as late as 1955 only one example was known.
A third state appeared with a revision changing the name to Blaeu in 1621. Keuning wrote in detail about this period of time and the various forms in which we find his name. The change was as a result of the competition of Jan Jansz and the obvious similarities of their names. This state was to appear through to 1630 without text on the reverse. It also appeared in this form in the Atlantis Appendix. This was Blaeu's first attempt at a world atlas, largely instigated by his purchase in 1629 of a number of Jodocus Hondius' plates, and in the following years he would experiment with various formats. In all of these it would appear with text. The author has uncovered two previously unrecorded states with new engraving to the embellishments in the oceans.
Blaeu died in 1638 and the business passed to his sons, Cornelis and Joan. The latter particularly carried the family name and was the driving force behind the multi-volume Atlas Major. On 23 February 1672 a fire at the firm destroyed its cartographic production. Some plates were dispersed at auction but the America map is not known to have been reused. There was one curious issue of the plate. In 1633 it was printed with the decorative border somehow masked leaving just the main map. It was used to illustrate Warhafftige Beschreibung aller denckwürdigsten Geschichten by Emanuel van Meteren, printed from Blaeu's press. A summation of the known states is listed below. All examples without text on the reverse are extremely rare.” (Burden " The Mapping of North America", p. 230).
Etching with fine later hand colour, small margins at left and right edge, in excellent condition. Dutch text on verso.
Bibliografia
Burden "The Mapping of North America", pp. 230-231, n. 189; Tooley, Mapping of America, pl. 169.
Willem Janszoon BLAEU (Uitgeest 1571- Amsterdam 1638)
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At the beginning of the seventeenth century Amsterdam was becoming one of the wealthiest trading cities in Europe, the base of the Dutch East India Company and a centre of banking and diamond trades, its people noted for their intellectual skills and splendid craftsmanship.
At this propitious time in the history of the Northern Provinces, Willem Janszoon Blaeu, who was born at Alkmaar in 1571 and trained in astronomy and the sciences by Tycho Brahe, the celebrated Danish astronomer, founded a business in Amsterdam in 1599 as a globe and instrument maker.
It was not long before the business expanded, publishing maps, topographical works and books of sea charts as well as constructing globes.
His most notable early work was a map of Holland (1604), a fine World Map (1605-06) and Het Licht der Zeevaerdt (The Light of Navigation), a marine atlas, which went through many editions in different languages and under a variety of titles.
At the same time Blaeu was planning a major atlas intended to include the most up-to-date maps of the whole known world but progress on so vast a project was slow and not until he bought between 30 and 40 plates of the Mercator Atlas from Jodocus Hondius II to add to his own collection was he able to publish, in 1630, a 60-map volume with the title Atlantis Appendix.
It was another five years before the first two volumes of his planned world atlas, Atlas Novus or the Theatrum Orbis Terrarum were issued. About this time he was appointed Hydrographer to the East India Company.
In 1638 Willem Blaeu died and the business passed into the hands of his sons, Joan and Cornelis, who continued and expanded their father's ambitious plans.
After the death of Cornelis, Joan directed the work alone and the whole series of 6 volumes was eventually completed about 1655.
As soon as it was finished he began the preparation of the even larger work, the Atlas Major, which reached publication in 1662 in II volumes (later editions in 9-12 volumes) and contained nearly 6oo double-page maps and 3,000 pages of text.
This was, and indeed remains, the most magnificent work of its kind ever produced; perhaps its geographical content was not as up-to-date or as accurate as its author could have wished, but any deficiencies in that direction were more than compensated for by the fine engraving and colouring, the elaborate cartouches and pictorial and heraldic detail and especially the splendid calligraphy.
In 1672 a disastrous fire destroyed Blaeu's printing house in the Gravenstraat and a year afterwards Joan Blaeu died. The firm's surviving stocks of plates and maps were gradually dispersed, some of the plates being bought by F. de Wit and Schenk and Valck, before final closure in about 1695.
It ought to be mentioned here that there is often confusion between the elder Blaeu and his rival Jan Jansson (Johannes Janssonius). Up to about 1619 Blaeu often signed his works Guilielmus Janssonius or Willems Jans Zoon but after that time he seems to have decided on Guilielmus or G. Blaeu.
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Willem Janszoon BLAEU (Uitgeest 1571- Amsterdam 1638)
|
At the beginning of the seventeenth century Amsterdam was becoming one of the wealthiest trading cities in Europe, the base of the Dutch East India Company and a centre of banking and diamond trades, its people noted for their intellectual skills and splendid craftsmanship.
At this propitious time in the history of the Northern Provinces, Willem Janszoon Blaeu, who was born at Alkmaar in 1571 and trained in astronomy and the sciences by Tycho Brahe, the celebrated Danish astronomer, founded a business in Amsterdam in 1599 as a globe and instrument maker.
It was not long before the business expanded, publishing maps, topographical works and books of sea charts as well as constructing globes.
His most notable early work was a map of Holland (1604), a fine World Map (1605-06) and Het Licht der Zeevaerdt (The Light of Navigation), a marine atlas, which went through many editions in different languages and under a variety of titles.
At the same time Blaeu was planning a major atlas intended to include the most up-to-date maps of the whole known world but progress on so vast a project was slow and not until he bought between 30 and 40 plates of the Mercator Atlas from Jodocus Hondius II to add to his own collection was he able to publish, in 1630, a 60-map volume with the title Atlantis Appendix.
It was another five years before the first two volumes of his planned world atlas, Atlas Novus or the Theatrum Orbis Terrarum were issued. About this time he was appointed Hydrographer to the East India Company.
In 1638 Willem Blaeu died and the business passed into the hands of his sons, Joan and Cornelis, who continued and expanded their father's ambitious plans.
After the death of Cornelis, Joan directed the work alone and the whole series of 6 volumes was eventually completed about 1655.
As soon as it was finished he began the preparation of the even larger work, the Atlas Major, which reached publication in 1662 in II volumes (later editions in 9-12 volumes) and contained nearly 6oo double-page maps and 3,000 pages of text.
This was, and indeed remains, the most magnificent work of its kind ever produced; perhaps its geographical content was not as up-to-date or as accurate as its author could have wished, but any deficiencies in that direction were more than compensated for by the fine engraving and colouring, the elaborate cartouches and pictorial and heraldic detail and especially the splendid calligraphy.
In 1672 a disastrous fire destroyed Blaeu's printing house in the Gravenstraat and a year afterwards Joan Blaeu died. The firm's surviving stocks of plates and maps were gradually dispersed, some of the plates being bought by F. de Wit and Schenk and Valck, before final closure in about 1695.
It ought to be mentioned here that there is often confusion between the elder Blaeu and his rival Jan Jansson (Johannes Janssonius). Up to about 1619 Blaeu often signed his works Guilielmus Janssonius or Willems Jans Zoon but after that time he seems to have decided on Guilielmus or G. Blaeu.
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