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The Electorate of Brandenburg
The map finely executed map is a richly detailed and ornate 18th-century depiction of the Electorate of Brandenburg and its surrounding territories, including parts of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Poland, engraved by GP Busch.
The map prominently displays Brandenburg's central role within the region, with Berlin at its heart. The depiction includes major towns and cities, such as Magdeburg, Cottbus, Frankfurt (Oder), Neuruppin, Szczecin (Stettin), and Wittenberg. Natural features, like the Mecklenburg Lake District and significant rivers such as the Elbe and Oder, are shown. Postal routes are marked.
The lower-left corner features a highly decorative title cartouche, incorporating symbols of Brandenburg's political and economic power. The cartouche includes the elaborate coat of arms of the Electorate, supported by heraldic figures, and is surrounded by allegorical imagery. Scenes of agriculture, trade, and royal equestrianism emphasize the prosperity and authority of Brandenburg under Prussian rule.
This map was produced during a period when Brandenburg-Prussia was emerging as a dominant force in Central Europe. The detailed marking of postal routes reflects the infrastructural development essential to state administration and military logistics.
Jacob Paul Freiherr von Gundling was a German historian and scholar who served as the Court Historiographer to King Frederick I of Prussia. Gundling was well-regarded in his early career for his intellectual accomplishments and administrative roles, including the presidency of the Prussian Academy of Sciences. However, he is most famously remembered as a figure of ridicule in the Tobacco Cabinet, a drinking circle of King Frederick William I, the "Soldier King."
Born to a Protestant pastor, Gundling attended the Pforta county school in Naumburg and later studied law and history at the universities of Altdorf, Helmstedt, Jena, and Halle. By 1699 he was accompanying the Nuremberg patrician Jacobus von Tetzell on diplomatic travels to Holland and England. In 1705, King Frederick I appointed him as a professor at the Berlin Knights' Academy and, later, historian at the Chief Herald's Office, responsible for verifying genealogical credentials of the Prussian nobility.
Gundling thrived under Frederick I’s patronage, gaining privileges that included accompanying the king to court and providing intellectual discourse on contemporary matters. In addition to his teaching and historical writing, Gundling contributed to significant state projects such as the mapping of Prussia and the establishment of a systematic Prussian school curriculum. His scholarship extended to detailed regional histories, including the Brandenburg Atlas, completed in 1724, and biographical works on figures such as Albrecht the Bear, the first Margrave of Brandenburg.
Gundling’s fortunes changed drastically under Frederick I’s successor, Frederick William I. The Soldier King, disdainful of his father’s cultured ways, abolished the Knights' Academy and relegated Gundling to a role akin to court jester in the Tobacco Cabinet. This informal society of military officers and courtiers indulged in drinking, debates, and cruel practical jokes, with Gundling often their target. Gundling retained formal positions of influence, including serving as Privy Councillor and President of the Prussian Academy of Sciences.
