[Manuscript map of Terra Australis]

Descripción

Anonymous / 1600 circa / [Manuscript map of Terra Australis] (Alex 1, 92054) Manuscript in ink and pigments on vellum. The vellum previously cut down and repurposed as part of bookbinding in the 17th century. The recto showing considerable wear consistent with it having been pasted to cartonnage boards. Some surface dirt and adhesive remnants removed from the surface with careful abrasion to uncover the image below. Terra Australis. A Vision of Australia Before Its Discovery. Vellum Fragment from a Previously-Unknown 16th-Century Manuscript Wall Map of the World. Unique manuscript map featuring Terra Australis, the adjacent islands of the Indo-Australian Archipelago, and the southern Indian Ocean, which was originally part of a monumental hand-drawn wall map of the world drawn in Italy at the end of the 16th century. This remarkable survival depicts information which first entered European travel narratives with Marco Polo, and which appeared in the maps of Gerard Mercator, Petrus Plancius, and Arnoldo di Arnoldi. The map illuminates modern viewers of the European conceptions of Terra Australis, at a time before the first recorded discovery of Australia by Willem Janszoon in 1606, including representations of the inhabitants, flora and fauna of the largely mythical continent. The fragment also provides provocative evidence of the existence of large-scale manuscript Italian wall maps at a point when none were previously known to have existed. The most striking aspect of the fragmentary representation of the Australian proto-continent is its abundant of illustrations, including trees, mountains, people, and mythical creatures. Over a dozen red city symbols are added, both along the coasts and within the interior of the Southland, illustrating a densely populated continent and multiple seaports. Despite being a faded fragment, this hand drawn illuminated chart must be regarded as compelling and previously unknown documentation of the hypothetical pre-history of the fifth continent and an extraordinary artifact of 16th Century Italian artistic cartography. Cartographic Contents The map shows a portion of the Indian Ocean, Southeast Asia, and the undiscovered proto-continent of Australia. The Indo-Australian Archipelago is shown, including named islands such as Java (Giava Maggiore), Borneo (Borneo), and Java Minor (Giaua Minor), as well as an unnamed Sumatra and the Malaysian Peninsula. The map's lower section showcases a grand Austral-continent, filled with images of trees, mountains, people, and mythical animals and numerous red city symbols illustrative an an unknown indigenous population. Italian Origins The map's Italian origin is evident from the toponyms (Oceano orientale, Giaua maggiore), compass rose with Italian directions of the winds (S=Syroco; O=Ostro and L=Libeccio), and the long Italian text in the unknown Terra Australis. The map was originally the lower right quarter of a larger manuscript map of the world, created in Italy. The cartographic image is assumed to have been based on a specific printed world map, which led to the large wall map of the world in twelve sheets (106 x 189 cm), engraved in 1600 by the Flemish cartographer Arnoldo di Arnoldi for publisher Matteo Florimi in Siena. Arnoldo de Arnoldi's wall map of the world was an attractively engraved work, but evidently not good enough to satisfy wealthy merchants and aristocrats. Instead of commercially available ordinary printed works, they wanted to own unique trophy versions to impress and outshine others. They consigned skillful artists to produce manuscript versions on vellum, thus creating true works of art. The printed model was broadly followed, but e.

N° de ref. del artículo 92054

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Detalles bibliográficos

Título

[Manuscript map of Terra Australis]

Editor

Anonymous

Fecha de publicación

1600

Encuadernación

No Binding

Estado

See Description

Tipo de libro

Map

Catálogos de vendedores

• Antique Maps