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This is an early miniature map of Java, taken from a Latin edition of Tabularum Geographicarum Contractarum by Petrus Bertius, published in Amsterdam by Jodocus Hondius. The map presents Java Major, alongside parts of Sumatra, Borneo, and the Lesser Sunda Islands, with intricate embellishments characteristic of early 17th-century cartography.
The map is oriented with north at the top and depicts Java in an elongated form, stretching from west to east. The coastline is adorned with red dots, representing settlements or fortifications on the north side of the island, reflecting the increasing European presence in the region. Among the place names, several early references to key locations appear, including Iakarta (Jakarta), Iappara (Japara), and Baly I. and Balambuam (Bali).
To the northwest, Sumatra is partially shown, including the Strait of Sunda, the crucial passage between Sumatra and Java that played a vital role in the spice trade. Borneo appears to the northeast, labeled with early names such as Calamata and Tania pura. East of Java, Bali (Baly) and Lombok (Gunape) are labeled as part of Java Minor, a term frequently used in early European maps to describe the Lesser Sunda Islands.
This map is part of Bertius’s Tabularum Geographicarum Contractarum, first published in 1616, a pocket atlas derived from Mercator’s maps and largely influenced by Hondius’s cartographic works. The engraving and style reflect the influence of the Dutch Golden Age of cartography, particularly the dominance of Amsterdam mapmakers in the early 17th century.
The Portuguese, Dutch, and English maritime powers were vying for control over the spice trade, and Java was at the heart of these struggles. The Dutch East India Company (VOC) established its base in Batavia (Jakarta) in 1619, just a few years after this map’s publication. The presence of European settlements marked a turning point in Java’s political and economic history, foreshadowing centuries of colonial rule.
Petrus Bertius was a Flemish historian, theologian, geographer, and cartographer. Known in Dutch as Peter de Bert, Bertius was born in Beveren. His father was a Protestant preacher and his family fled to London around 1568. The young Bertius only returned to the Low Countries in 1577, to attend the University of Leiden. A bright pupil, Bertius worked as a tutor and was named subregent of the Leiden Statencollege in 1593. He ascended to the position of regent in 1606, upon the death of the former regent, who was also Bertius’ father-in-law. However, due to his radical religious views, he eventually lost his teaching position and was forbidden from offering private lessons.
His brothers-in-law were Jodocus Hondius and Pieter van den Keere, who were both prominent cartographers. Bertius began his own cartographic publishing in 1600 when he released a Latin edition of Barent Langenes’ miniature atlas Caert Thresoor (1598). He published another miniature atlas that first appeared in 1616.
By 1618, Bertius was named cosmographer to Louis XIII. He converted to Catholicism and took up a position as professor of rhetoric at the Collège de Boncourt (University of Paris). In 1622, Louis XIII created a chart of mathematics specifically for Bertius and named him his royal historian. He died in Paris in 1629.
![[ First Printed Map of Sumatra ]](https://storage.googleapis.com/raremaps/img/small/107264.jpg)
![[ Old Color! ] Nova Tabula Insularum Iavae, Sumatrae, Borneonis et Aliarum Mallaccam usquae delineata in insula Iava . . .](https://storage.googleapis.com/raremaps/img/small/78233.jpg)
