MUNSTER, Sebastian. [Famous Woodcut Map of the Asian Continent]
Tabula Orientalis Regionis, Asiae Scilicet Extremas Complectens Terras & Regna. Basle, Henri Petri, 1550, coloured, 270 x 350mm. A very fine example with wide margins.
Asia from Munster's "Geographia", based on that of Ptolemy. Much of the information for this map came from the travels of Marco Polo, written whilst he was in prison in 1298. This work told of Polo's travels with his father and uncle to China in 1275, and had a immense impact on the concept of Asia held by Europeans through the sixteenth century. The map contains many inaccuracies reflecting the lack of good, first-hand explorations of Asia. The Indian sub-continent is shown too small, whereas in contrast Southeast Asia is beginning to be depicted somewhat correctly. Ceylon, once shown as a very large island, is now more its proper size, though two islands are shown in the immediate area. The old misconception concerning Ceylon is still reflected on this map, however, for the Indonesian island of Sumatra has inherited the name Taprobana. Cambay, Goa and Cannonore are all shown, reflecting the Portuguese presence on India's west coast. Munster extends the continent off the eastern edge of the map, so as not to commit on whether Asia was or was not connected with North America, despite his own map of America showing it as a separate land mass. Marco Polo's information was not all an improvement on Ptolemy. He introduced several geographic misconceptions, including one that put a 7,448 island archipelago off the coast of China, a misconception shown here by Munster with a scattering of islands and a legend giving their number.
[Ref: 10992]    £980.00 ($1,509 • €1,186 rates)

HONDIUS, Jodocus. Asia. London: Henry Featherstone, 1625, English text edition. Coloured. 150 x 195mm, set in text. False margin added on left.
Asia, first published in the reduced version of the Mercator/ Hondius 'Atlas Minor' of 1607. In 1621 the printing plates were sold to a London publisher and appeared in 'Purchas His Pilgrimies', as this example, with the letterpress sur-title 'Hondius his Map of Asia' . Later Dutch editions used new plates by Jansson.
[Ref: 8132]    £230.00 ($354 • €278 rates)

SPEED, John. [Classic 17th century carte à figure map of Asia]
Asia with the Islands Adjoyning described... London, George Humble, 1627. Coloured. 390 x 510mm. Two small tears at top margin entering the map by 6 mm, reinforced on verso.
The first map of Asia by an Englishman (although Speed still had to turn to a Dutch engraver, Abraham Goos, to produce it), published in the 'Prospect of the... World'. Down the sides are ten costume vignettes, and eight city prospects, including Jerusalem, Goa and Macao, run along the top of the map. On verso is an English text, 'The Description of Asia', containing a mixture of fact and amusing myth.
[Ref: 11189]    £3,000.00 ($4,620 • €3,630 rates)

BLAEU, Willem Janszoon. [Classic Carte à Figure map of Asia]
Asia noviter delineata. Amsterdam, c.1640, Latin text edition. Original colour. 415 x 560mm. Very fine condition, wide margins.
One of the most decorative maps of Asia: nine vignette 'map-views' of cities line the top of the map and ten costumes run down the two sides. The seas are filled with decoration, including galleons, a twin-spouted sea-monster and a merman blowing a shell trumpet. Korea is shown as an island and Australia has yet to appear. From Blaeu's "Theatrum Orbis Terrarum" KOEMAN Bl 22
This item is currently on reserve

HONDIUS, Jodocus. [Unrecorded carte-à-figures map of Asia]
Asia Recens Summa Cura Delineata... Bologna, Francesco Sabatini, 1670, 455 x 555mm Bottom right corner rebuilt with manuscript reinstatement. Otherwise a very fine example.
A very rare and attractive carte-à-figures map of Asia, engraved by Pietro Todeschi, the side panels with native costume figures and miniature vignette views of major towns and cities, amongst which are shown Goa, Macao and Calcutta. Of interest in the map is the North-Eastern truncation of China/Siberia, presumably so due to a belief in a North-West passage through the Straits of Anian. This map was published by Francesco Sabatini, one of the many fringe figures in Italian map-making and publishing in the late seventeenth century. Unfortunately, even accurate dates for his life and death elude us, while his work life can be established only by the rough dating of his maps dependent on the dedications on those maps bearing them, but he was apparently active as a printer and publisher (and possibly engraver) in the 1670s, probably in Bologna. This a contemporary piracy of Dutch carte-à-figures maps, popularised in the first part of the seventeenth century, although it seems likely that the map was plagiarised from intermediate Italian copies, perhaps by Stefano Scolari, an engraver and publisher (or possibly two different men) active from the 1640s to 1660s. Klaus Stopp, 'Drie Karten von Francesco Sabatini',., Mappæ Antiquæ Liber Amicorum Günter Schilder, p.281-285.; Günter Schilder,
[Ref: 10576]    £7,500.00 ($11,550 • €9,075 rates)

OVERTON, John. [Rare English Map of Asia]
A New Plaine and most Exact map of Asia described by NI Vischer and rendered into English with the habits of the countries and manner of the cheife citties. London, 1671. 425 x 540mm. Old folds as original issued.
A separate-issue map of Asia, with borders decorated with costumes, town views and portraits of kings. Little of Overton's output was original: he bought the stock of Peter Stent after his death from the plague in 1665, and c.1700 he bought Speed's county map plates. Apparently he was planning a world atlas and lacked maps of the continents, so had them engraved. As the matching map of Africa is signed by Philip Holmes the stylistic similarity makes it likely that Holmes also engraved the Asia. Originally issued in 1668 this is an example of the second state, with Overton's new address.
[Ref: 9340]    £4,500.00 ($6,930 • €5,445 rates)

FRESCHOT, Casimir Don. [An extremely rare miniature map of Tartary]
(142) Tartaria Grande in Asia sotto diversi Principi é Gran Cham Mahametan et Gentile Longh: 70. Gior.e. Venice: Giovanni Pare', c. 1680. Sheet 51 x 51mm. Trimmed from a large broadsheet.
Don Casimir Freschot, a Benedictine Priest and author of about 50 books on history and Venice, composed a 'goose game', 'Geografia ridotta a giuoco per istruttione della giovane nobiltà veneziana', to facilitate "the teaching of geography to the young Venetian nobility", of which this map was a section. Engraved by Anton Francesco Lucini, this was probably the earliest geographical game to be published. The 'board' comprised 153 squares containing small maps, arranged in a spiral, with a plan of Venice at the centre. Above the game were four larger maps of the continents, the rules, including the prizes and forfeits for landing on squares, and a dedication. There is only one known complete example, in the Biblioteca Nazionale Marciana in Venice. Even incomplete examples are extremely rare. "Charta Geographica" magazine, vol.1, page 76; plus insert with facsimile broadsheet.
[Ref: 11116]    £380.00 ($585 • €460 rates)

FRESCHOT, Casimir Don. [A rare miniature map of the Asian continent.]
Asia. Venice: Giovanni Pare', c. 1680. Sheet 120 x 85mm. Trimmed from a large broadsheet.
Don Casimir Freschot, a Benedictine Priest and author of about 50 books on history and Venice, composed a 'goose game', 'Geografia ridotta a giuoco per istruttione della giovane nobiltà veneziana', to facilitate "the teaching of geography to the young Venetian nobility", of which this map was a section. Engraved by Anton Francesco Lucini, this was probably the earliest geographical game to be published. The 'board' comprised 153 squares containing small maps, arranged in a spiral, with a plan of Venice at the centre. Above the game were four larger maps of the continents (of which this is one), the rules, including the prizes and forfeits for landing on squares, and a dedication. There is only one known complete example, in the Biblioteca Nazionale Marciana in Venice. Even incomplete examples are extremely rare. "Charta Geographica" magazine, vol.1, page 76; plus insert with facsimile broadsheet.
[Ref: 11114]    £450.00 ($693 • €545 rates)

MALLET, Alain Manesson. Asie Ancienne. Paris, 1683. Coloured. 150 x 110mm.
Published in a the 'Description de l'Univers'.
[Ref: 8670]    £115.00 ($177 • €139 rates)

MALLET, Alain Manesson. Asie. Paris, 1683. Coloured. 150 x 110mm.
Published in athe 'Description de l'Univers'.
[Ref: 8671]    £110.00 ($169 • €133 rates)