"[Atlas Novus Frontispiece]", Scherer, Heinrich

This fascinating frontispiece was designed by Johannes Deger and engraved by Joseph à Montalegre. At center is a circular map of South Asia surrounded by the heavens and the signs of the zodiac. The land is filled with depictions of wildlife (including a unicorn) and the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve, and the sea is filled with a variety of sea monsters. A cloud background surrounds the map with putti representing the four elements in each corner, each holding a cartouche enveloping a psalm. Scherer, a devout Jesuit, produced this geographical compendium to depict the Catholic hierarchy and the spread of Jesuit missions throughout the world.

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Condition: A

Minor soil in blank margins.