Rare and striking example, in vibrant original color, of one of the earliest printed maps to name Armenia and to focus on the Caucasus and Georgia regions. The map was prepared by Dominus Nicolaus Germanus, a Benedictine monk from Saxony. He was also the author of several manuscript copies of... More about Tercia. Asie. Tabula
A beautiful example, in bold, rare original color, of the ancient map of the Arabian Peninsula from the most important edition of Ptolemy’s Geographia of the 16th century. It is among the earliest acquirable maps to focus on the region, and it is among the most beautiful of any Waldseemuller..... More about Sexta Asie Tabula
A superb example of the first printed Western map to focus on China and Japan, in the very scarce second state. (This like all Fries maps is much more commonly seen in the third and fourth states of 1535 and 1541.) Although in rudimentary form, the map shows all of... More about Untitled
The earliest separate map specifically of Asia. Munster’s striking woodcut map significantly updated earlier European depictions of Asia that were based almost entirely on Claudius Ptolemy, the second century A. D. Alexandrian geographer. For example, the coast of China is here in more recognizable form, and although much too slender..... More about Tabula orientalis regionis, Asiae scilicet extremas complectens terras & regna
An attractive example of the Malay Peninsula map from Munster’s 1552 Ptolemy. The map shows “India beyond the Ganges,” then a near-mythical region reputed to be a source of gold. Beyond the peninsula lies a huge bay – the Sinus Magnus – which was the supposed body of water bounded..... More about Tabula Asiae XI:
A very attractive, early woodcut map of the easternmost extent of Europe, reaching from Russia in the north to Syria and part of Persia in the south. The map is centered on a mountainous region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea. The toponymy of the map is a.... More about Tartaria olim Scythia
A very early issue from a 1570 edition. Three maps on a single sheet each showing important parts of the classical world--Asia Minor (western Turkey), Egypt, and Carthage (Tunis)--but here depicted with then up-to-date cartography. More about Natoliae.../ Aegypti.../ Carthaginis
Fascinating engraving containing two aerial views of the city, one as it was at the beginning of the first century BCE, and the other a contemporaneous view. Each is accompanied by legends listing important structures and places that are keyed to the plans. In the lower right is a vignette... More about Hierosolyma, Clarissima totius Orientis civitas
One of the most distinctive, early cartographic curiosities: a woodcut, cloverleaf-shaped map of the world with Jerusalem at the center. The map echoes the style of medieval mappae mundi, with Jerusalem at its center and with each of the leaves of the trefoil representing the continents of Asia, Africa and..... More about Die gantze Welt in ein Kleberblat / Welches in der Stadt Hannover / meines lieben Vaterlandes Wapen
A superb example. "'The Wanderings of Abraham' is among the most elaborate of Ortelius's compositions. It demonstrates his combined skills as a cartographer and an artist, and his accomplishment as an historian" (Nebenzahl). Twenty-two fine medallions, each containing in miniature a key episode in the life of Abraham, surround the..... More about Abrahami Patriarchae Peregrinatio, Et Vita
The first separate map of the Pacific in a strong example. “One of the most important maps that appeared in the Ortelius atlases ...” (Burden). With its two splendid cartouches and a well-detailed illustration of Magellan’s flagship, the Victoria, this is also one of the most beautifully engraved of Ortelius’..... More about Maris Pacifici, (quod vulgo Mar del Zur
An excellent example in an original binding of the work that set the standard for the small atlas. “The small maps are extremely well engraved; they are neat and clear and elegantly composed” (Van der Krogt, p. 373). A measure of their quality is that the maps “served many purposes..... More about Bertij Tabularum Geographicarum Contractarum Libri Quinque… apud Cornelium Nicolai, Anno 1606
A beautifully engraved and magnificently colored map of Asia Minor and Cyprus, from one of the most illustrious publishers of the Dutch Golden Age of Mapmaking. It includes most of the Greek Islands and a well-detailed depiction of Cyprus. A pasha at lower right holds a mileage scale; two turbaned... More about Natolia, quae olim Asia Minor
An exceptionally fresh example, in brilliant original color, of the earliest separate map of the area that now includes Hong Kong. Macau, Guangzhou (Canton), and several other place names appear in the Zhu (Pearl) River delta, and Hainan Island to the southwest is quite well detailed. Finely engraved Oriental figures..... More about Quantung, Imperii Sinarum Provincia Duodecima
An atlas of wall maps in an Italian binding of uncommon elegance created for Prince Giambattista Borghese, whose armorial bookplate is on the inside of the front cover. Giambattista Borghese (1639-1717), of the powerful Sienese/ Roman family, was a notable patron of the arts. He purchased the family home that..... More about On spine:) Dell’Hercole e Studio Geografico Di Gio Battista Nicolosi Dottore Di Sacra Teologia...
A rare, beautifully colored map of southern Iraq of the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, focusing on Basra, shown in a small bird-s-eye view at lower right. Fifty-six place names on the map are in Arabic. It is among the few printed maps, this early, that we've seen..... More about Vera Delineatio Civitatis Bassorae
A bright, vibrantly colored example of this cartes-a-figures map of the Turkish Empire with city views and costumed figures in the borders. Among the cities depicted at top are Damascus, Jerusalem, Istanbul and Alexandria. The side figures in their national dress, both male and female, hail from Greece, Egypt, Assyria... More about The Turkish Empire Newly Augmented by John Speed
Superb original-color example of the first edition of one of the most beautiful 17th-century charts of the area. Schilder described the maps of the De Wit firm as being "distinguished by their excellent craftsmanship, exactness and beauty." Romeyn de Hooghe’s intricately etched cartouche shows a European trader accompanied by a...... More about Orientaliora Indiarum Orientalium cum Insulis Adjacentibus… / Pascaert van t’Ooster gedeelte...
One of the earliest maps of the Turkish Empire engraved and published in England. Printed from two separate copperplates on one sheet, the map depicts the Ottoman Empire from Hungary to Persia and including the Empire’s frontier with Russia north of the Black Sea. Blome..... More about A Mapp of the Estates of the Turkish Empire in Asia and Europe…
This was the best, generally available map of its day of Southeast Asia. Dashed lines show the routes of trading vessels throughout the area, including the route that passed through present day Singapore. The much contended Spice Islands are shown in good detail as is the Philippines. The northern coast... More about Isole dell'Indie, divise in Filippine, Molucche, e della Sonda
A distinctively decorated map of the Holy Land in a beautiful example. The map's exclusively Old Testament imagery in the cartouche includes the figures of Moses and Solomon. Abraham is also shown in the process of sacrificing Isaac, interrupted by an angel helpfully pointing out a ram hiding behind the... More about Iudaea, seu Terra Sancta quae Hebraeorum sive Israelitarum
A most unusual, beautiful, and rare world map--the only one we have seen on the market that was conceived according to Buddhist cosmology. “It became the prototype of other Buddhist world maps” (Cortazzi). Accordingly, China and India are positioned at the center of the earth, and along with Japan, they..... More about Nansen Bushu Bankoku Shōka No Zu. (“Outline Map of all the Countries of the Universe”
A super, dark-impressioned example with full, period wash coloring of an important map that impressively combined both European and Japanese sources. It was, in fact, one of the first European maps to both make use of Japanese sources and include Japanese characters. The engraving’s rich imagery mingles indigenous Japanese scenes..... More about Imperium Japonicum
An animated, beautifully colored panoramic view of Beijing with the Great Wall in the background, one of only a few obtainable, Western, printed images of the city prior to 1800. This work is an example of a vue optique, a print that is engraved in such a way, with... More about Vue de Peking Capitale de la Chine, et de la Superbe Muraille qui la Separe de la Tartarie
A beautiful examples of one of the finest nautical charts of the Indian Coast in the region including the ports of Surat, Mumbai and Goa. It was produced at the beginning of the long conflict between the British and the Maratha Confederacy over control of western India. The chart includes..... More about The Coast of India from Gyants Point to Cape Rama, Comprehending the Coasts of Guzurat, Concan...