Sebastian Munster:  Tabula Europae VI [Italy & Corsica]

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Title: Tabula Europae VI [Italy & Corsica]

Map Maker: Sebastian Munster

Description:

Finely colored example of of Munster's map of Italy, Corsica and neighboring Islands, based on Ptolemy.

Munster first issued his Geographia in 1540.  The maps in the 1542 edition are typically identical to the 1540 edition, except for the inclusion of a second printer's device in the title (one before the title, one after the title).  Munster's Geographia was a cartographic landmark, including not only Ptolemaic maps, but also a number of updated modern maps, including the first separate maps of the 4 continents, the first map of England and the earliest obtainable map of Scandinavia.  Munster's Geographia and his Cosmographia (first published in 1548) dominated cartographic publication during the mid-16th Century.

Munster is generally regarded as one of the most important map makers of the 16th Century. Munster was a linguist and mathematician, who initially taught Hebrew in Heidelberg. He issued his first map  (of Germany) in 1529, after which he issued a call for geographical information about Germany to scholars throughout the country. The response was better than hoped for, and included substantial foreign material, which supplied him with up to date, if not necessarily accurate maps for the issuance of his Geographia in 1540.

References: Borri, R. (Italy) #25.

Related Categories:
Maps of European Islands
Maps of Italy