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Attractive antique map of Nijmegen on the River Waal in the Netherlands. The map, which is oriented so that south is towards the upper part of the work, shows the city as a series of fortifications without significant detail inside the city.
Nijmegen is the oldest city in the Netherlands, which has been recognized since the Roman era. As a border town on the edge of the Republic of United Provinces, it was besieged many times even following its final capture from the Spanish Empire in 1591. The town's fortifications would be demolished in 1874, when the Franco-Prussian War made it evident that such defenses were no longer useful.
Covens & Mortier was one of the largest and most successful publishing firms in Dutch history and continued in business for over a century. Pierre Mortier the Elder (1661-1711) had obtained a privilege in 1690 to distribute the works of French geographers in the Netherlands. After his widow continued the business for several years, Cornelis (1699-1783) took over in 1719.
In 1721, Mortier forged a partnership with Johannes Covens (1697-1774), who had recently married Cornelis’ sister. They published under the joint name of Covens & Mortier. In 1774, upon the death of his father, Johannes Covens II (1722-1794) took over his father’s share. In 1778, the company changed its name to J. Covens & Zoon, or J. Covens & Son.
Covens II’s son, Cornelis (1764-1825), later inherited the business and brought Petrus Mortier IV back into the fold. Petrus was the great-grandson of Petrus Mortier I. From 1794, the business was called Mortier, Covens & Zoon, or Mortier, Covens, & Son.
The business specialized in publishing French geographers including Deslisle, Jaillot, Janssonius, and Sanson. They also published atlases, for example a 1725 reissue of Frederik de Wit’s Atlas Major and an atlas, with additions, from the works of Guillaume Delisle. There were also Covens & Mortier pocket atlases and town atlases. The company profited from acquiring plates from other geographers as well. For example, the purchased Pieter van der Aa’s plates in 1730. Finally, they also compiled a few maps in house. At their height, they had the largest collection of geographic prints ever assembled in Amsterdam.
![[Napoleon's Battles in France, Belgium Netherlands, Luxembourg, Germany] No. 1 Frontiere du Nord. Mesny 5.](https://storage.googleapis.com/raremaps/img/small/60727.jpg)
