BESCHREIBUNG ENGELLANDTS UND SCHOTTLANDTS

Key Properties

Edition: Cosmographia (German), 1598

Language: German

Collation & Technical Description

Woodcut. Approx. 8½ × 13½ in. A strongly simplified image of England, Wales, much of Scotland and eastern Ireland; complete text leaf, uncoloured.

Condition

The impression is clear and the sheet appears complete. A few small spots and light discolouration are visible, but no major tears.

References & Bibliography

From S. Münster, Cosmographia, Basel (German edition, 1598).

Woodcut; cf. the standard Münster literature (Burmeister; Hantzsch).

Description

A small but charming sixteenth-century woodcut from Münster's Cosmographia. The map shows England, Wales, much of Scotland and the east of Ireland in a strongly simplified image.

It should not be confused with the larger and commercially stronger early Münster map of England. This later woodcut is attractive above all as an authentic Renaissance object.

The uncoloured state is historically appropriate and need be no drawback for a collector.

Notable features: Original sixteenth-century woodcut; Complete text leaf with generous margins; Attractive entry-level object for a map collection.

Historical Significance

A characteristic sheet from Münster's Cosmographia, the most widely read geographical work of the sixteenth century.

Provenance

Not established.