ATLASES 

SPEED, John.
[First Edition of the 'Miniature Speed']
England Wales Scotland and Ireland Described and Abridged With ye Historie Relation of things worthy memory from a farr Larger Volume Done By John Speed. London: George Humble, 1627, First Edition. Oblong 8vo, full contemporary calf gilt; engraved title, engraved 'Catalogue of the Shires' and 63 maps, two folding, one with some old colour. Table of maps at the rear.
Although this altlas is usually attributed to Speed, 40 of the maps are re-issues of a series engraved by Pieter van den Keere and first published c.1605, pre-dating Speed's folio atlas to qualify as the earliest atlas of the British Isles. After being used in an edition of Camden's 'Britaninia' published by Willem Blaeu in 1617, 40 of the original 44 plates were bought by George Humble, the son of one of the original publishers of Speed's 'Theatre'. He had the plates reworked, replacing the original Latin titles with English, and adding plate numbers. Dutch engravers were still needed; the engraver who added the title 'Part of Scotland it is called of the inhabitance Stranauerne with his borderers' probably wasn't familiar with written English. Humble had 23 new maps engraved, placing the maps in the same order as the 'Theatre'. The final map listed in the Table, 'Midia', was never published. SKELTON: 17.
[Ref: 4676]  

BLAEU, Johannes.
[The first Western atlas of China]
Novus Atlas Sinensis. A Martino Martinio... Amsterdam, 1654, Latin edition. Folio; rebound in contemporary full calf gilt; engr. title, pp. [xi] + 171 + (19)+ (6)(index) + xii + 33 + (3); 17 double-page maps in fine colour, blank versos as usual. Two pages of the preliminaries reinforced with archivist's tissue, some toning of text.
Blaeu's Atlas of China, the first Western atlas devoted to that country, with maps compiled by Father Martino Martini (1614-61), a Jesuit missionary. In the preface Martini claimed to have visited seven of the fifteen Chinese provinces, although he does not say which ones. His maps (a general map of China and Japan, 15 provinces and a more detailed map of Japan) were far in advance of any available in the West, and this atlas remained the standard georgraphical work on China until 1737, when D'Anville published his 'Atlas de la Chine'. KOEMAN: Bl 53, published as volume 6 of the Atlas Novus.
[Ref: 11184]  

BLAEU, Johannes.
[The first western atlas of China, in outstanding original colour]
Seste deel van de Nieuwe Atlas, oft Tooneel des Aerdrijex... Amsterdam, 1655, Dutch edition. First edition. Folio; full vellum gilt; pp. (iv) + 212 + (20) (Register) + xviii (Cathay) + 40 (Tartary); 2 engraved titles and 17 double-page maps, all in fine original colour. Bottom corners of titles, first map and text to page 8 repaired.
The First Edition of Blaeu's Atlas of China, the first Western atlas devoted to the country. Unusually for Blaeu atlases the maps have no text on verso. This example was published as the last of the six-volume atlas with the Latin title 'Theatrum Orbis Terrarum'. Later the maps were incorporated into the Asia volume of the ultimate Blaeu atlas, the 'Atlas Major', which was the most expensive publication of the 17th century. Blaeu used the maps of Father Martino Martini (1614-1661), a Jesuit missionary who went to China in 1643, remaining there eight years, travelling extensively and collating knowledge. He left China in 1651 to go to Rome, but, as the best available passage was with a Dutch privateer, his route included Norway, Amsterdam, Munich & Vienna. He met with scholars (finally proving that China was indeed the 'Cathay' of Marco Polo) and publishers, who wanted to publish his writings and his maps, which were far more detailed than anything previously available. The Blaeu/Martini atlas was a significant breakthrough concerning China: even in the early C20th it was called 'the most complete geographical description of China that we possess, and through which Martini has become the father of geographical learning on China.' (Ferdinand von Richthofen, 1833-1905). KOEMAN: Bl 52.
[Ref: 12129]  

BAYER, Johann.
[Uranometria]
Uranometria, Omnium Asterismorum Continens Schemata, Nova Methodo Delineata, Aeris Laminis Expressa. Ulm: Johann Görlin, 1661. Folio, modern full calf gilt; engr. title + 51 double page celestial maps as called for, without text as usual.
First published in 1603, the 'Uranometria' (named after Urania, the Muse of Astronomy) was the first star atlas to use Greek letters to denote the apparent brightness of the stars, a system still used for stars visible to the naked eye. The work depicts the 48 Ptolemaic constellations, one per plate, and a group of twelve new constellations from the southern skys, as charted by Keyzer. Despite the second edition titlepage, the quality of the impressions of the plates suggest they were printed for the first edition but not used until later.
[Ref: 6767]  

BLAEU, Johannes.
[The First Western Atlas of China]
Novus Atlas Sinensis. Amsterdam, 1662, Latin edition. Folio; original full morocco gilt; half title, engr. title with gold highlightss, pp. viii+171+(20+(5)+xii+33+(5); 17 double-page maps in fine original colour. General map slightly toned.
Blaeu's Atlas of China, the first Western atlas devoted to that country. Blaeu used the maps of Father Martino Martini, a Jesuit missionary, whose survey was a distinct improvement on existing maps. Unusually for Blaeu atlases the maps have no text on verso.. KOEMAN: Bl 56.
[Ref: 6858]  

NICOLOSI, Giovanni Baptiste.
Hercules Siculus sive Studium Geographicum... Rome, Michael Hercules, 1670-1, First Latin Edition. Folio, contemporary half vellum with ink mss. title, inner hinges strained; pp. (lxvi) + 371 + (47), two identical engr. titles (first slightly trimmed, two half-titles, two identical engr. armorials, 22 engr. maps, & an endpaper with eight scale strips pasted on.
In 1652 Nicolosi was commissioned by the Propaganda Fide (Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith) to create Italy's first atlas of the world, first issued in 1660. The twenty-two maps in this unusual atlas are: a double-hemisphere world on two sheets, and Europe, Asia, Africa & North America and South America, each on four sheets. The World is among the first maps to show Tasman's discoveries in Australasia, with parts of New Zealand & Tasmania. The North America has the Rio Grande correctly flowing southeast from New Mexico to the Gulf for the first time; this second edition has been updated, for example marking Drake's landfall in California and the naming of Lake Ontario. The Africa map is upside down, with France (part of the Europe map) filling most of the top right sheet. SHIRLEY: 418; BURDEN: 354 & 355; NORWICH: 45.
[Ref: 1760]  

DE WIT, Frederick.
[A Splendid Example of De Wit's 1680 Atlas]
Atlas Amsterdam, 1680. Folio, contemporary full calf gilt; marbled endpapers, illustrated title, index and 28 double-page maps in fine original colour, as called for.
A superb and complete example of de Wit's 1680 edition of his "atlas" in wonderful original colour, This edition has the added map of Denmark. The maps are 1 Nova Orbis Tabula 2) America 3) Africa 4) Asia 5) Europa 6) Hispania 7) Portugallia 8) Gallia 9) Italia, Corsica, & Sardinia 10) Germania 11) Rhenus Fluvius 12) Suecia & Norvegia 14) Polonia, & Duc. Lithuania, Volhinia, Podolia, Ukrania, Prussia, Livonia & Curlandia 15) Russia vulgo Moscovia 16) Tartaria & China 17) India Orientalis 18) Persia, Natolia, Armenia & Arabia 19) Turcicum Imperium 20) Terra Sancta A 21) Hungaria, Transilvania, Servia, Romania, Walachia, Moldavia, Sclavonia, Croatia, Bosnia, & Dalmatia B 21) Hungaria Regnum 22) Graecia 23) Candia Insula 24) Sicilia Insula 25) Malta & Goza Insulae 26) Anglia, Scotia, & Hibernia A Germania Inferior Koeman Wit 3.
[Ref: 7663]  

LA FEUILLE, Daniel de.
[Lord Wardington's example of a Military Atlas]
Les Tablettes Guerrières, ou Cartes choisies Pour la Commodité des Officiers et des Voyageurs, Contenant toutes les Cartes générales Du Monde, avec les particulieres des Lieux ou le Théatre de la Guerre se fait sentir en Europe. Amsterdam, Paul de la Feuille, 1709. Agenda 8vo (198 x 70mm.), contemporary calf, rebacked with gilt in compartments; title, pp. 16, 30 folding maps and plates. A few folds with signs of wear, map of Italy added from another example.
The first edition of this military pocket atlas to be published by Paul de la Feuille after the death of his father that year. Published during the War of the Spanish Succession, the maps of European countries have plans of the defences down the sides. The tall pocket format means the maps are folded several times.
[Ref: 8553]  

BLOME, Richard.
[Taylor's atlas with maps from Blome's "Speed's Maps Epitomiz'd"]
England Exactly Described Or a Guide to Travellers In a Compleat Sett of Maps of All the Counties of England; being a Map for each County... London: Thomas Taylor, 1716-17. Tall 8vo, C18th panelled calf, rebacked with original title label; engr. title, 4 engr. distance tables; maps of England & Wales, Scotland & Ireland, 39 numbered county maps on 39 plates, as called for, all fine fine original colour.
A superb example of Taylor's edition of Blome's "Speed's Maps Epitomiz'd", first published in 1681. The three general maps are new compositions: the county maps are all Blome's, with signatures of Wenceslaus Hollar and Richard Palmer as engravers. Blome's name is still on some of the maps, but on others it has been removed and occasionally it has been replaced with Taylor's imprint. A robust and clean example of an uncommon antique atlas. See SHIRLEY: British Isles, Taylor 2.for England & Wales map, state 3 of 5, with roads added, 1717, the second year of publication.
[Ref: 11658]  

MICHELOT, Henri & BRÉMOND, Laurent.
[Pair of Sea Atlases of the Mediterranean]
[Ports et Rades de la Mediterranée.] [and] Recuil de Plusieurs Plans des Ports et Rades de la Mer Mediterranée. Marseilles, c.1730. Two works; large folio chart volume, contemporary gilt-stamped morocco, chipped and scuffed, ties, old ink mss. index on front endpaper, bookplate of 'Richard Bristow of London Esq.r'; no title, 16 charts (with dates between 1715-26), 2 plates of ships and a diagram of the parts of a ship, all backed with contemporary paper; and 4to volume of port plans, modern morocco (matching larger volume), ties, engr. title and 37 (of 38?) plans.
A matching pair of publications, designed to be used together: a large chart volume covering the Mediterranean and a smaller companion giving plans of the most important ports. The missing Port is Algiers, which is also missing in the Nordenskiold copy. NATIONAL MARITIME MUSEUM: Vol. III, Part 1, no. 216; NORDENSKIOLD 151.
[Ref: 3538]