Gelriae, Cliviae, Finitimorumque Locorum Verissima Descriptio.

1595 Ortelius Map of Gelderland, the Netherlands

Publication Date: 1595

About this Item

Very good. Generous margins. Superb original color. Slight foxing. Size 14.75 x 19.75 Inches. A very fine old color example of Abraham Ortelius' 1595 map of Gelderland (also known as Geulders, or as Geldria or Gelriae in Latin) in the central part of the Netherlands. A Closer Look Oriented towards the east, this map takes in the historical region of Gelderland, a duchy at the start of the Eighty Years War (1568 - 1648) that became a province under the Union of Utrecht (forerunner to the United Provinces). Cities and towns are indicated throughout, with larger towns and cities represented by illustrations of buildings. Arnhem (here as Arnhen) is located at center towards bottom-left, situated along the Nederrijn, a branch of the Rhine; to its right (south) is Nijmegen (Niemmegen), on the Waal, another branch of the Rhine. Utrecht appears at bottom-left. Natural features are also cataloged in great detail, especially the complex system of rivers, tributaries, and smaller waterways running through the region. The Zuiderzee is displayed at bottom-left with ships firing guns, a likely reference to the ongoing conflict with Habsburg Spain (in earlier states of the map, a single ship appears without gunsmoke). The Veluwe, also at bottom-left, is the largest forest in the Netherlands and contains notable areas of relatively high elevation. An elaborate cartouche surrounds the title, while three scales are provided at top and an intricate border surrounds the map. Text on the verso provides a historical and geographical description of the region. Historical Context As with most of the Netherlands, Gelderland suffered the effects of warfare during the long struggle for Dutch independence. For instance, Zutphen (here as Zurphen) towards left was a strategically important and heavily fortified town where a combined Dutch-English force was defeated by the Army of Flanders in 1586 - 1587. In 1591, however, the city was retaken after a brief siege by Maurice of Orange during his highly successful counter-attack against Spanish forces in the 1590s. Arnhem and Nijmegen were similarly captured from Spain by joint Dutch-English forces, in 1585 and 1591, respectively, but remained in a precarious position for years and were subject to periodic sieges. Publication History and Census Though undated, the present example conforms typographically to the 1595 Latin edition of the work. While the first edition of the Theatrum was released in 1570, Ortelius continually improved the work - both by adding new maps, and by refining the production of the book. Maps appearing in editions of the Theatrum in the 1580s and 1590s generally display, as here, a finer quality of color than those in the earlier issues of the work. As with all Ortelius maps from the Theatrum , there can be considerable inconsistency and confusion in catalog listings. The OCLC independently catalogs one example of the map dated 1595 held by the Klassik Stiftung Weimar. References: OCLC 551923462.

Seller Inventory # Geldria-ortelius-1595

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Gelriae, Cliviae, Finitimorumque Locorum Verissima Descriptio.
• Publication Date: 1595
• Edition: 1st Edition
• Seller catalogs:
  • HOLLAND-BELGIUM