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This map presents a highly detailed and visually striking depiction of the historical regions of Brandenburg and Pomerania.
The map illustrates the northern part of the Upper Saxon Circle (Circulus Saxoniae Superioris) within the Holy Roman Empire. The map provides a comprehensive view of the territories that now straddle the modern-day border between Germany and Poland, reflecting the shifting political landscape of the early modern period.
The map encompasses the Margraviate of Brandenburg and the Duchy of Pomerania, regions that played significant roles in the history of the Holy Roman Empire and later the Kingdom of Prussia. The northern extent reaches the Baltic Sea (Mare Balticum or De Oost Zee), while the southern regions extend into Silesia, Greater Poland, and Saxony. The map shows political boundaries, towns, rivers, and forests. Hand-colored boundary lines delineate the various duchies, principalities, and counties, emphasizing the political fragmentation of the region.
A lavish title cartouche is positioned in the upper right-hand corner, floating among clouds and adorned with putti (cherubs) and coats of arms representing the noble families and ruling entities of Brandenburg and Pomerania. The cartouche not only serves as a decorative element but also reinforces the heraldic and political affiliations of the region. In the lower right-hand corner, the distance scale is depicted with an elaborate agricultural motif, featuring beehives and a field of wheat, symbolizing industry, prosperity, and agrarian wealth—key economic aspects of Brandenburg and Pomerania during this period.
During the late 17th and early 18th centuries, Brandenburg-Prussia was emerging as a dominant power in northern Europe, absorbing Pomerania after the Treaty of Westphalia (1648) and later consolidating it through subsequent treaties with Sweden. The Margraviate of Brandenburg served as the political core of what would become the Kingdom of Prussia in 1701, making this map a reflection of a critical period in German and Polish history. The Duchy of Pomerania, historically divided between Pomerania-Stettin and Pomerania-Wolgast, was a contested region between the Holy Roman Empire, Sweden, and Poland.
De Wit (1629 ca.-1706) was a mapmaker and mapseller who was born in Gouda but who worked and died in Amsterdam. He moved to the city in 1648, where he opened a printing operation under the name of "de dry Crabben" (The Three Crabs); in 1655, he changed the name of his shop to "de Witte Paskaert" (The White Chart). From the 1660s onward, he published atlases with a variety of maps; he is best known for these atlases and his Dutch town maps. He gained a privilege from the States General in 1688. After Frederik’s death in 1706, his wife Maria ran the shop for four years before selling it. Their son, Franciscus, was a stockfish merchant and had no interest in the map shop. At the auction to liquidate the de Wit stock, most of the plates went to Pieter Mortier, whose firm eventually became Covens & Mortier, one of the biggest cartography houses of the eighteenth century.
![[ Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Rugen, Bornholm, Lubeck, Sonnderborg,Svendborg, Zealand ] Beschrijvinghe vant zuijder deel vande Belt, en hoemen de Custen van Mekeleborch Pomeren, met de Lande daer tegen over tusschen emeren en Bornholm geleghe besijlen en alle Reve en Sanden daer ontrent Shouwen Sal.](https://storage.googleapis.com/raremaps/img/small/61988.jpg)
![[ Upper Saxony ] Geograph Delineation des zu denen Kuhr Saechsischen Landen Gehoerigen Marggraftums Ober Lausitz . . .](https://storage.googleapis.com/raremaps/img/small/105233.jpg)
![(Second World War - NVKD SMERSH) Übersicht der Verkehrsverbindungen mit Sonntagsrückfahrkarte von Berlin. Gültig während des Winterfahrplans 1938/39 [Overview of the Transport Links with Sunday return ticket from Berlin. Valid During the Winter Timetable 1938/39]](https://storage.googleapis.com/raremaps/img/small/69563.jpg)
