The artwork
This map of Istria, made by Jan Janssonius, is a refined example of 17th-century cartography, with east at the top, in keeping with a common practice of the time. Derived from Giovanni Magini's map of 1620, published in the first modern atlas devoted to Italy, it depicts the Istrian peninsula, the Gulf of Trieste and the surrounding islands, with particular attention to the Venetian ports and to Lake Cerknica, an intermittent Slovenian lake often missing from contemporary maps.
Jan Janssonius (1588–1664), Dutch geographer and publisher, was a central figure of the golden age of Dutch cartography. The son of a bookseller, he married the daughter of the renowned cartographer Jodocus Hondius, with whom he shared the publishing business. From 1616 Janssonius began publishing his first maps and, in 1633, he worked with his brother-in-law Henricus Hondius on the reprint of the atlas Mercator-Hondius, which later became the celebrated Atlas Novus and then theAtlas Major, a colossal work in eleven volumes.
After Janssonius's death in Amsterdam in 1664, the business passed to his son-in-law Johannes van Waesbergen. The atlas plates were later sold to Gerard Valck and Pieter Schenk, who reissued them under their own names. Janssonius's maps, including this one of Istria, continue to be prized for their precision, elegance and historical importance, making them sought-after pieces in the world of map collecting.
Unique quality material
Print on handmade Amalfi paper
Sheet size: 29 x 42 cm (11.4 x 16.5 in)
With frame: 31 x 44 cm (12.2 x 17.3 in)
Material: artwork printed on very fine handmade Amalfi paper with deckled edges
Frame: light brown beech wood and wood pulp, handmade
