17th century chart of the Dutch Spice Islands

BLAEU, Willem Janszoon.

Moluccae Insulae Celeberimae.
Amsterdam, 1640, French text edition. Fine original colour. 375 x 480mm.

Early map of the islands of Ternate, Timor, Tidore and Makian, off the coast of Halmahera, orientated with north to the right with an insert map of the Dutch East India Company's trading post on Bachian Island.
This chain was a focal point of the VOC's lucrative spice trade.
Despite Blaeu's name on the plate, this map was engraved by Jodocus Hondius II (son of the engraver of Speed's county atlas). When Jodocus died in 1629 many of his plates were sold to Willem Blaeu, who added his name to the plates and used them to publish his first atlas in 1630. Angered by the sale, Hondius's brother-in-law Jansson had these plates slavishly copied for the family atlas.

KOEMAN: Bl 57.
Stock ID : 19675