British Isles – a woodblock map by S. Munster, 1544

Description

An iconic early map of British Isles with ships and sea monsters, published by Sebastian Munster for his “Cosmographia” in 1544. One of the most thought after 16th century hand-coloured maps, engraved and printed by a woodblock.

Sebastian Munster (1488 – 1552) was a German scholar studying Hebrew, Greek and mathematics, who later became one of the most influential cartographers of 16th century. Before embarking on his most famous work, “Cosmographia”, he translated Ptolemy’s “Geographia” from 150 AD and illustrated it with maps based on Ptolemy’s calculations. This work also contains a section of modern maps. Subsequent editions of the “Cosmographia” were to contain a vast number of maps and plans. One consequence of Munster’s work was the impetus it gave to regional mapping of Germany, but Munster was also the first cartographer to produce a set of maps of the four continents on separate maps.

The Cosmographia by Sebastian Munster from 1544 is considered to be the earliest German language description of the world. It had numerous editions in different languages. The last German edition was published in 1628, long after his death. The Cosmographia was one of the most successful and popular books of the 16th century. It passed through 24 editions in 100 years. This success was due to the woodcuts of the most prominent engravers. The “Cosmographia” of Sebastian Munster was most important in reviving geography in 16th-century Europe.

This poster is a high quality “giclee” reproduction of a restored antique original, custom-printed on Standard Single-weight Matt Coated art paper 140gsm or  Heavyweight Matt Coated art paper 230gsm (more of a thin card density), or superb Epson Matt Canvas 320gsm, according to your choice. We use the latest UltraChromeHDX pigment inks which guarantee 60 years of colour  permanence (up to 200 years fade-proof for colour prints).  This poster is suitable for mounting and framing, as well as direct display on a wall.

IMPORTANT: If you are going to frame this print we recommend art paper 230gsm or canvas 320gsm. The 140gsm art paper option makes sense if you wish to DIY-frame or to tack the poster to a wall without framing, due to it being lighter and more flexible. All three options are giclee prints of the same high quality.

POSTER PRINT QUALITY

Please note that our reproduction posters are made to order and every print is checked before posting. The images we use in most cases are scans of antique originals, professionally restored in order to remove the most evident stains, folds, tears and other damage. We strive to balance the restoration and saving the overall integrity and antique appearance of the original. Our restored images are unique and these prints can be purchased only from www.VictorianMaps.com.

There will be no watermark on your image but there might be a white border depending on aspect ratio of the original. Please note that when a large antique original is reduced to a smaller size print some text may not be readable. Please check our measurements: every poster has its own aspect ratio same as original and printed exactly as pictured.