"Africa", Ortelius/Vrients
Subject: Africa
Period: 1609 (published)
Publication: L' Epitome du Theatre de l' Univers
Color: Hand Color
Size:
4.7 x 3.2 inches
11.9 x 8.1 cm
Jan B. Vrients produced this edition of Ortelius' miniature atlas, acquiring the plates of both Philip Galle and those of the Arsenius brothers. The 1609 edition included this charming map of Africa, engraved by the Arsenius brothers. The map is lacking a great deal of detail but is interesting for its strange depiction of the Nile, which originates in a large lake south of the Equator. From this lake three large rivers flow to the seas: the Nile to the Mediterranean, the Congo to the Atlantic and what could be the Zambeze to the Indian Ocean. The map is decorated with a strapwork title cartouche and three sailing ships. Latin text on verso.
References: King, p. 76.
Condition: A+
Minor show through of text in margins, else very fine.
