|
This fine beautifully
hand coloured
original antique map a birds-eye
view of
the 3 German towns of
Cleve, Duisburg & Emmerich and the Belgian town of
Genappe was published by Georg Braun
& Frans Hogenberg for the 1575 atlas of town plans
Civiates Orbis Terrarum Vol II (1572-1612) intended as a
companion to Abraham Ortelius's master Atlas Theatrum
Orbis Terrarum published in 1570.
Kleve
Translation of cartouche
text: Kleve, an elegant town in the Duchy of
Cleves, renowned and remarkable for the famous ducal
castle and the collegiate foundation.
Commentary by B&H on verso: "The city
of Kleve in the Duchy of Cleves is highly regarded
because of its age and because the Duke of Jülich,
Cleves and Berg has a splendid castle here, where he
holds his princely court, and also because of its
collegiate church."
This view of Kleve, seen from the direction of the
Mühlberg, is dominated by the castle of the Counts and
Dukes of Cleves, which has been called Schwanenburg
since the 19th century after the legendary Knight of the
Swan, Helias. The other building that dominates the
silhouette of the city is the Gothic collegiate church
of St Mary's Assumption. In the course of the changes
carried out in the 15th century, the New City, known as
the Hag Quarter, was founded. When the Cleves line died
out on 1614, the city passed to Brandenburg. As a
residence of the Electors of Brandenburg, Kleve took on
the Baroque appearance that is still largely preserved
today.
Duisburg
Translation of cartouche text: Duisburg, ancient
town, old royal palace of the Franks.
Commentary by B&H on verso: "Duisburg
is a city in old Germany between the Ruhr and the Anger,
in the old days the Rhine also flowed up to the city
walls. As long as the city still bordered the Rhine, a
fair was held here, which is now held in Frankfurt."
Duisburg is shown in a bird's-eye view from the west. In
the middle of the city rises the late Gothic St
Saviour's church, which dates back to the 9th century.
This plate, which was faithfully reproduced by Merian
even in 1647, also shows the harbour on the navigable
dead arm of the Rhine, which gave the city great
economic importance up to the 14th century. But in 1290,
when Duisburg was pledged by King Rudolf I to Dietrich
of Cleves, it lost its privileges and its imperial
importance and sank into insignificance as a little
farming town. The industrial revolution in the 19th
century and the development of the inland port led to an
economic upturn.
Emmerich
Translation of cartouche text: Emmerich, a town
under the rule of Cleves, famous because of its
collegiate church and a school.
Commentary by B&H on verso: "Emmerich
is a little town in the Duchy of Cleves with elegant
buildings and a great religious foundation, built by St
Willibrord himself. Here is a good elementary school, in
which many learned men have received their basic
education, for many industrious rectors have headed this
school."
This view from the opposite bank of the Rhine shows the
city of Emmerich, which is mentioned in a document for
the first time in 828. The city grew up around a church
erected by St Willibrord c. 700 on the site where the
church of St Aldegund with late medieval sculptures. In
1233 Emmerich was granted a municipal charter and in
1407 it became a member of the Hanseatic League.
Genappe
Translation of
cartouche text: Genappe, town in the Duchy of
Cleves.
This town is located on the Dyle south of Brussels and
is shown in the place set in a picturesque landscape, an
impression that is reinforced by the windmill. Towards
the end of the 12th century the Dukes of Brabant erected
a fortress here on the banks of the Dyle, which grew
into a little town in the 13th and 14th centuries. In
the 15th century the future King Louis XI lived in the
castle of Genappe. The town lost its importance as a
result of the plague in 1533 and due to religious
conflicts in 1578.
Background of Civitates
Orbis Terrarum
The first volume of the Civitates
Orbis Terrarum was published in Cologne in 1572. The sixth and the final volume
appeared in 1617.
This great city atlas, edited by Georg Braun and largely engraved by Franz
Hogenberg, eventually contained 546 prospects, bird-eye views and map views of
cities from all over the world. Braun (1541-1622), a cleric of Cologne, was the
principal editor of the work, and was greatly assisted in his project by the
close, and continued interest of Abraham Ortelius, whose Theatrum Orbis Terrarum
of 1570 was, as a systematic and comprehensive collection of maps of uniform
style, the first true atlas.
For a variety of reasons town plans were comparatively
latecomers in the long history of cartography. Few
cities in Europe in the middle ages had more than 20,00
inhabitants and even London in the late Elizabethan
period had only 100-150,000 people which in itself was
probably 10 times that of any other English city. The
Nuremberg Chronicle in 1493 included one of the first
town views of Jerusalem, thereafter, for most of the
sixteenth century, German cartographers led the way in
producing town plans in a modern sense. In 1544
Sebastian Munster issued in Basle his Cosmographia
containing roughly sixty-six plans and views, some in
the plan form, but many in the old panorama or birds eye
view. (Ref: Tooley; M&B)
Condition Report:
Paper thickness and quality: - Heavy and stable
Paper color: - off white
Age of map color: - Early
Colors used: - Green, blue, red, yellow
General color appearance: - Authentic
Paper size: - 21in x 16in (535mm x 410mm)
Plate size: - 16 1/2in x 14in (420mm x 355mm)
Margins: - Min 1in (25mm)
Imperfections:
Margins: - Light soiling in margins
Plate area: - None
Verso: - None | 
