Acquired From: Leen Helmink
Colouring: Uncoloured
Condition: Very Good
Confirmed: Yes
Date Acquired: 16/12/2019
Description: This printed page from the 1561 Dutch edition of Cosmographia, published by Jan Verwithagen in Antwerp, serves as the title page for the section Dat tweede boeck der cosmo (The second book of the cosmos), which divides the known world into the lesser or western hemisphere (De minder oft westerluche lingde) and the greater or eastern hemisphere (De meerder oft dosteluche lingde).nThe page features a prominently placed woodcut wind rose displaying thirty-two compass directions labelled in Dutch, with the four corners bearing the classical wind names Lebeccis, Greco, Syroccho, and Magistral. Beneath the diagram is a short text explaining the names given to inhabitants of the southern hemisphere, using classical and early modern geographical terminology: Perieci, Anteci, Antipodes, Periscij, and Amphisen. The page exemplifies the educational aims of vernacular cosmographic publishing in the Low Countries during the mid-sixteenth century, linking classical learning with contemporary navigational knowledge.nThe broader work from which this page comes, Cosmographia, was a seminal text in early modern scientific thought. Peter Apian (Petrus Apianus), professor of mathematics at the University of Ingolstadt, first published his influential Cosmographicus liber in 1524 to clarify the relationship between cosmography, geography, and astronomy. At that time, cosmographythe study of the structure of the universe and Earth's place within itwas still closely tied to both geography and astronomy, disciplines that only later diverged into separate fields.nApians former student, the mathematician and cartographer Gemma Frisius, recognised the value of the work and published an expanded Latin edition in 1529 under the shortened title Cosmographia. Described as diligenter recognita (diligently corrected), Frisiuss version introduced updated scientific content and detailed descriptions of navigational instruments such as the astrolabe and cross-staff.nA further expanded edition followed in 1533, incorporating Frisiuss own instructional text on practical navigation, which significantly increased the works educational scope. These enhancements helped secure the enduring popularity of Cosmographia, leading to more than thirty later editions and translations into French, Spanish, and Flemish, often revised and republished with local adaptations.nThe 1561 Dutch edition by Verwithagen was the first of twelve he published, aimed at vernacular readers.
First published: Cosmographia liber, Landshut: Johann Weyssenburger, 1524
Mapmaker: Apain, Peter [Petrus] (1495-1592]
Price: 250
Primary Category: Prints & Related Material
Purchase Reference: Ledger 2022. Email 16 Dec 2019
References: A list of Cosmographia editions, see van Ortroy (1901)
Technique: Woodcut
This state: 1561
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