Sphero in plano

Acquired From: Leen Helmink

Colouring: Uncoloured

Condition: Very Good

Confirmed: 2/10/2024

Date Acquired: 5/9/2016

Description: Martin Waldseemüllers Sphera in plano (Sphere or Globe in Plane Form), first published in 1513 and again in 1520 as part of his Geography, presents a schematic diagram of the world within an armillary sphere. This diagram illustrates the Earths position within the celestial sphere, using the North and South Poles as reference points, and incorporates celestial elements including zodiac constellations and cardinal winds.nIn 1522, Johann Grüninger acquired the woodblocks used for Waldseemüllers maps from Johann Schott in order to produce a smaller-format edition of the atlas. This new version was edited by Lorenz Fries, who reduced and simplified the original maps and diagrams while incorporating new material intended to reflect contemporary geographical understanding. Friess version of Sphera in plano accompanies the sixth chapter of Book Seven of his Geographia, titled Circularus sphaerae cum habitabili terra descriptio (A Circular Sphere with a Description of the Habitable Earth).nThe diagram positions the viewers eye relative to the globe, which is centered at point E and enclosed within the armillary ring (ABCD). The imagined North Pole is marked as point A, while the South Pole is designated as point C. Terrestrial features include the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn and the Equator, whose extremities are shaded to indicate their passage beyond the viewers field of vision.nCelestial elements are also prominently displayed, including the zodiac constellations of Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius, and Pisces. The cardinal winds are labelled around the perimeter of the diagram: the North wind (Septentrio and Aparctias) appears to the right, the South wind (Auster and Notus) to the left, and the East wind (Subsolanus and Apelliotes) at the top. Notably, the West wind remains unnamed in Friess version, marking a departure from Waldseemüllers original diagram.nFor other maps by Waldseemüller in this collection, see see nos. #61 and #63 nFor other maps by Fries in this collection, see nos. View Record (#1), # View Record (#2), View Record (#70), #89 and View Record (#359)

First published: Geographia Strasbourg: Johann Grüninger, 1522

Image Size (cm): 36 x 30

Mapmaker: Fries, Lorenz (ca. 1490-1550)

Other states: Waldseemüllers Geographia, 1513

Price: 1,000

Primary Category: Prints & Related Material

Purchase Reference: Ledger 2022

Rarity: R1 Extremely rare – occasionally seen on the market

References: Karrow (1993), Lorenz FriesnFor mathematical discussion on the Sphero in plano, see Neugebauer (1959)nSee also O. A. W. Dilke (1987), The Culmination of Greek Cartography in Ptolemy, in The History of Cartography, Vol. 1, Cartography in Prehistoric, Ancient, and Medieval Europe and the Mediterranean, ed. David Woodward and J. B. Harley (Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 1987), 177200, 188-89.

Sheet size (cm): 39.2 x 30.2

Technique: Woodcut

This state: 1522, Second