"Parte Orientale dell' Europa", Coronelli, Vincenzo Maria

This stunning map of Eastern Europe is a masterpiece of the mapmaker's art. It spans from Murmansk Oblast south to Crete in the west and then over to the northern edge of the Caspian Sea in the east. The Black Sea is the most prominent feature, and several place names and topographical details are identified. Novaya Zemlya appears in an odd, incomplete configuration in the north with a note nearby referring to William Barentsz's exploration of the region and a graphic depiction of an encampment. The bottom right corner is adorned with a beautifully engraved decorative title cartouche featuring two putti, flora, and a crown. Another cartouche at top left encompasses six distance scales. A second, smaller map, Isola d'Islanda (12.1 x 9.1"), appears amongst the Italian text on verso and depicts Iceland in nice detail.

Vincenzo Coronelli was a Franciscan priest and renowned mathematician and cartographer. He was appointed official Cosmographer to the Venetian Republic in 1685 and founded the world's earliest geographic society, L'Accademia Cosmografica degli Argonauti. He was also appointed Map-maker Royal to Louis XIV, which gave him access to the latest French manuscript records that he was able to incorporate into his printed maps. His maps are boldly engraved and filled with detail of the cities, villages, forests, and topography.

References: Shirley (BL Atlases) T.CORO-13a #147.

Condition: B+

A dark impression with printer's ink residue, minor offsetting, and a pair of small worm holes, only one of which is inside the neatline. A centerfold separation that enters 2" into map at right and a small edge tear in the top left blank margin have been archivally repaired.