Constantinopolis by Wit Frederick (1 results)

Copper engraving, printed on laid paper. A stunning panoramic view of Istanbul, by the celebrated Dutch cartographer Frederick de Wit with a numbered Key (1-17) to principle places in town and a poem in Latin, Dutch, English, and French. The view draws on the Merian view of 1635, doubling the height and adding the sky. Flourishing in the part of the of the 17th century, Frederick de Wit was one of the most successful map engravers in Amsterdam. Following the decline of the Blaeu and Jansson publishing houses, de Wit cornered the cartographic publishing market by acquiring a vast array of copper plates. His prolific business encompassed almost every aspect of map making from sea charts and atlases to town books and town plans; he even produced large wall maps. His work, which is finely engraved and superbly executed, was extremely popular and continued to be published even after his death. This impressive engraving is a striking town view of Istanbul in Turkey.