Description de la Cité de Romme

A very rare map of Rome, unknown by mostly of the repertoiries.

The view depicts the city as it was at the end of the 15th century, drawing on the same prototype commonly indicated in the panorama of Mantua in turn taken from a still unknown panorama engraved in the workshop of Francesco Rosselli around 1485.

Work taken from the very rare "Plantz, pourtraitz et descriptions de plusieurs villes et forteresses, tant de l'Europe, Asie, & Afrique, que des Indes, & terres neuves: Leurs fondations, antiquitez, & manieres de vivre: Avec plusieurs cartes generales & particulieres, servans à la Cosmographie, iointes à leurs declarations: deux tables fort amples, l'une des chapitres, & l'autre des matieres contenues en ce present livre. Le tout mis par ordre, region par region, par Antoine du Pinets" printed in Lyon by Jean d’Ogerolles.

The work include 55 woodcuts, many after Munster, comprising 3 double-page maps (cordiform world after Apianus, Europe and Germany), 7 half-page maps, 18 double-page views (including Lyon, Bordeaux, Geneva, Frankfurt, Florence, Venice, Rome, Constantinople, Jerusalem, Cusco and others), and 27 illustrations (including Mexico city).

The view is inspired to Guillame Guéroult’s "Premier livre des figures et portraitz des villes", published in 1552 by Balthazar Arnouellet. From him, d’Ogerolles bought many plates, therefore we can state that this block had been already used many years before and has then undergone some changes before being reprinted.

Woodcut, in excellent condition.