|
||
|
|
|
|
Detailed regional map of Florida and the Caribbean, used by Vander Aa to illustrate a Dutch translation of the narrative of one of Columbus' Voyages to the New World. Shows Central America and the Caribbean in full, with small parts of South America and Spanish Florida.
The R. de Spiritu Santo (usually representing the Mississippi) flows from the west and trails off in Texas. An unlabeled longer river flows westwards into the Gulf, passing through some localities that suggest that this is the Mississippi. A singular large lake is shown in the vicinity of South Carolina, with some coastal mountain ranges. Shows the southern end of the Outer Banks. Yucatan shown as a peninsula. Lakes of Nicaragua are in an unusual orientation and almost separate Costa Rica and Panama from northern Central America. Extends southwards to the outflow of the Orinoco in an area labeled Nova Andalusia. Pacific labeled as "Mar del Zur," the Caribbean as "Mar del Nort" both in Dutch, but the Gulf of Mexico is labeled "Sinus Mexicanus," in Latin.
In all, Vander Aa issued 130 translations of important 15th, 16th and 17th Century travel narratives to the America, Africa and Asia, which were issued in 28 volumes in the early part of the 18th century. Many of the narratives are either unobtainable or extremely rare in their original formats.
Pieter van der Aa (1659-1733) was a Dutch mapmaker and publisher who printed pirated editions of foreign bestsellers and illustrated books, but is best known for his voluminous output of maps and atlases. Van der Aa was born to a German stonecutter from Holstein. Interestingly, all three van der Aa sons came to be involved in the printing business. Hildebrand was a copper engraver and Boudewyn was a printer.
