Acquired From: Leen Helmink
Colouring: Coloured
Condition: Good
Date Acquired: Nov 2025
Dealers ID No.: 19657
Description: A small world map first issued in the 1596 edition of Matthias Quads Europae Totius Orbis Terrarum. The map combines empirical cartography with humanist commentary, expressed through an extended Latin title, a note on the earths circumference, and a philosophical quotation from Cicero. nThe inscription surrounding the half-length figure of Christ in North America reads: dns noster jesus christus totius mundi conditor redemptor et futurus iudex (our lord Jesus Christ, creator of the whole world, redeemer, and future judge). nThe title reads: typus orbis terrarum, ad imitationem universalis gerhardi mercatoris. cum secundum tam veterum quam recentiorum supputationem 5400 milliaria germanica ambitus complectitur: quanto id temporis spacio circumagi possit, hinc constabit (a model of the world, in the style of the universal map of Gerard Mercator. since the earths circumference is 5400 German miles, according to both ancient and modern calculations, this shows how long it would take to travel around it). nThe bottom border carries the Cicero quotation: quid ei potest videri magnum in rebus humanis cui aeternitas omnis totiusque mundi nota sit magnitudo. cicero (what in human affairs can seem great to someone who understands the eternity and vastness of the entire world?).nThe citation, drawn from Ciceros Tusculan Disputations, underscores the humbling scale of the cosmos. Its placement beneath the world image invites viewers to contemplate the relation between human action and the immensity of the terrestrial sphere. Quads world map reflects the intellectual world of the late sixteenth century, when geography was understood not only as a way to describe the earth but also as a tool for teaching moral, religious, and philosophical ideas. By combining Mercators projection with explanatory texts and Christian imagery, the map becomes more than a geographic pictureit stands as an important example of how early modern mapmakers used their work to express wider beliefs about the world and humanitys place in it.
Engraver: Matthias Quad
First published: Europae totius orbis terrarum, (Third Edition), Cologne: Johann Bussemacher, 1596
Image Size (cm): 31.5×22
Mapmaker: Quad, Matthias (1557-1613)
Primary Category: World
Rarity: R2 Very rare – one or two copies appear on the market
Sheet size (cm): 35.5×27.5
Shirley ID #: 197 Mapping the World
Technique: Copper Engraving
This state: 1600
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