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Description

Decorative Map of the Caspian Sea Region

Gorgeous map of parts of Georgia, Armenia Kilani, Dageston, Schirvan and the southern part of the Caspian sea with Caucasus and Turkmenistan, City of Baku, and a striking view of the Russian City of Tercki.

The map shows the Persian Provinces of Kilaniae, namely Chirvaniea Dagestniae and other neighboring countries. The map includes information derived from the famous itinerary of Adam Olearius.

Adam Olearius was a seventeenth century German scholar, mathematician, geographer and librarian. He became secretary to the ambassador sent by Frederick III, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp, to the Shah of Safavid Persia. He published two books about events and observations during his travels.

After studying at Leipzig, he became librarian and court mathematician to Frederick III. In 1633, he was appointed secretary to ambassadors Philipp Crusius and Otto Bruggemann, a merchant from Hamburg, sent by the duke to Muscovy and Persia in the hope of making arrangements by which his newly founded city of Friedrichstadt should become the terminus of an overland silk-trade. In Moscow they concluded an advantageous treaty with Tsar Michael of Russia, and returned forthwith to Gottorp to procure the ratification of this arrangement from the duke before proceeding to Persia.

With this accomplished, they left Hamburg on October 22, 1635 and arrived in Moscow on March 29, 1636. They left Moscow on June 30 for Balakhna, near Nizhniy Novgorod, and prepared for their descent of the Volga. Their voyage down the great river and over the Caspian Sea was slow and hindered by accidents, especially by grounding near Darband on November 14, 1636. But at last, by way of Shamakhy Ardabil, Soltaniyeh and Kasvin, they reached the Persian court at Isfahan in 1637 and were received by the Safavid king, Shah Safi.

Negotiations there were not as successful as in Moscow, and they left Isfahan in December 1637, returning home. At Reval, Olearius parted from his colleagues and embarked directly for Lübeck. On his way he had made a chart of the Volga. Once back at Gottorp, Olearius became librarian to the Duke, who also made him keeper of his cabinet of curiosities. Under his care, the Gottorp library and cabinet were greatly enriched in manuscripts, books, and other works of art. In 1651, he purchased, for this purpose, the collection of Dutch scholar and physician Bernardus Paludanus.

It is by his narrative of the Russian and the Persian legation that Olearius is best known. Poet Paul Fleming and J. A. de Mandelslo, whose travels to the East Indies are usually published with those of Olearius, accompanied the embassy. Under Olearius' direction, the celebrated globe of Gottorp and armillary sphere were executed between 1654 and 1664 and given to Peter the Great of Russia. His energetic and well-informed writings introduced Germany and Europe to Persian literature and culture.

Condition Description
Some dampstaining in lower left corner.
Johann Baptist Homann Biography

Johann Baptist Homann (1663-1724) was a mapmaker who founded the famous Homann Heirs publishing company. He lived his entire life in Bavaria, particularly in Nuremberg. Initially, Johann trained to become a priest before converting to Protestantism and working as a notary.

In 1702, Johann founded a publishing house that specialized in engravings. The firm flourished, becoming the leading map publisher in Germany and an important entity in the European map market. In 1715, Johann was named Imperial Geographer to the Holy Roman Empire by Charles VI and made a member of the Prussian Academy of Sciences. Most importantly for his business, his reputation and contacts gained him imperial printing privileges which protected his publications and recommended him to customers. Johann is best known for this Grosser Atlas ueber die ganze Welt, or the Grand Atlas of the World, published in 1716.

After Johann died in 1724, the business passed to his son, Christoph (1703-1730). Upon Christoph’s early death, the company passed to subsequent heirs, with the name of the company changing to Homann Erben, or Homann Heirs. The firm continued in business until 1848.