Sebastian Munster

Germania VI Nova Tabula

      Excellent modern map of German Europe, with South oriented at the top of the map. The map extends from the Baltic (Danzig, Kolberg, Rostok and Lubec) and Vistula to the Low Countries (Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Selandie Insulae, and Ghent) in the North to the Alps, Switzerland, Austria and Croatia (Sagabria, Geneva, Insbrug, Lucern, etc. shown) in the south. The map is centered on Nurnberg and the Franconia region and shows the extent of the Germanic regions of Europe in the 16th Century. One of the best modern maps of the region to date. The map 1542 edition is unchanged from the 1540 edition. Munster's Geographia was a cartographic landmark, including not only Ptolemaic maps, but also a number of landmark modern maps, including the first separate maps of the 4 continents, the first map of England and the earliest obtainable map of Scandinavia. Munster dominated cartographic publication during the mid-16th Century and is generally regarded as one of the most important map makers of the 16th Century. Munster was a linguist and mathematician, who initially taught Hebrew in Heidelberg. He issued his first mapping of Germany in 1529, after which he issued a call geographical information about Germany to scholars throughout the country. The response was better than hoped for, and included substantial foreign material, which supplied him with up to date, if not necessarily accurate maps for the issuance of his Geographia in 1540. A fine dark impression with wide margins. (Basle, 1542) [color: Uncolored, size: 13.5 x 10 inches, condition: VG]