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C1631
Africae Nova Tabula
Mapmaker:
Very decorative c.17th map of Africa. Jodocus Hondius removed the surrounding panels of figures on Henricus Hondius’s earlier map to enable the map to be included in folio atlases. In 1604 he had purchased the plates of Mercator’s Atlas from … Read Full Description
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Details
Full Title:
Africae Nova Tabula
Date:
C1631
Mapmaker:
Condition:
In good condition, with centre fold as issued.
Technique:
Hand coloured copper engraving.
Image Size:
502mm
x 380mm
Paper Size:
580mm
x 495mm
AUTHENTICITY
Genuine antique
dated:
1631
Description:
Very decorative c.17th map of Africa.
Jodocus Hondius removed the surrounding panels of figures on Henricus Hondius’s earlier map to enable the map to be included in folio atlases. In 1604 he had purchased the plates of Mercator’s Atlas from Mercator’s grandson. Hondius republished Mercator’s work with 36 additional maps, including several which he himself had produced. The maps have since become known as the ‘Mercator-Hondius’series. After his death in 1611, his publishing work in Amsterdam was continued by his widow and two sons, Jodocus II and Henricus. This is the third state of five.
The title cartouche has an animal head at top surrounded by a wreath. There are six galleons in full sail and sea monsters and flying fish in the seas. Neptune and mermaid are depicted reiding a wave at lower left. Numerous animals are shown on the map, including; elephants, lions, monkeys, ostriches and goats.
References:
Betz, R. The Mapping of Africa. A Cartobibliography of Printed Maps of the African Continent to 1700. 2007.: 58.3.
Koeman, C. Atlantes Neerlandici. Amsterdam 1967. Volumes I-V :: 8600:1D.2.
Norwich, O. Norwich's Maps of Africa. Vermont 1997 :: Map 34, pp.44.
Collections:
Library of Congress Washington D.C.: G8200 1640 .H6
Betz, R. The Mapping of Africa. A Cartobibliography of Printed Maps of the African Continent to 1700. 2007.: 58.3.
Koeman, C. Atlantes Neerlandici. Amsterdam 1967. Volumes I-V :: 8600:1D.2.
Norwich, O. Norwich's Maps of Africa. Vermont 1997 :: Map 34, pp.44.
Collections:
Library of Congress Washington D.C.: G8200 1640 .H6
Henricus Hondius II (1597 - 1651)
Youngest son of Jodocus Hondius I, Dutch cartographer, engraver, and publisher, whose career represents the continuation and consolidation of the great cartographic enterprise initiated by his father, Jodocus Hondius I, and sustained in partnership with Jan Janssonius. Born in Amsterdam into a family of leading mapmakers, Henricus was educated within an environment deeply immersed in the geographical sciences, engraving, and the commercial publishing of atlases. His early training under his father’s direction provided him with technical mastery in both copperplate engraving and the compilation of geographical sources, disciplines that would underpin his later achievements. Following the death of his father in 1612, Henricus, together with his brother Jodocus II, assumed responsibility for the family’s publishing business. During the 1620s and 1630s, he worked in close collaboration with Jan Janssonius, who had married into the Hondius family. Their partnership culminated in the expansion and reissue of the Atlas Novus, a project that significantly enhanced and revised the cartographic legacy of Gerardus Mercator. Henricus’s contributions included the refinement of map plates, the addition of new geographical data drawn from contemporary explorations, and a distinctive stylistic sensibility in engraving that lent the Atlas both clarity and elegance. His editions of the Atlas Novus were notable for their technical precision and for the inclusion of regional maps that reflected the geopolitical realities of early c.17th Europe. The collaboration between Hondius and Janssonius effectively challenged the dominance of the Blaeu publishing house, marking a period of intense competition that advanced the overall quality of Dutch cartography. Beyond his role as a mapmaker, Henricus Hondius II was also an engraver of portraits and frontispieces, displaying an aesthetic sensibility that complemented his scientific rigour. His meticulous attention to typographic and decorative detail became a hallmark of the Hondius-Janssonius atlases. Henricus’s death in 1651 marked the end of a significant chapter in the Hondius lineage, yet his influence persisted through subsequent atlas editions that continued to bear his name. His career embodies the synthesis of artistry, technical skill, and scientific ambition that defined the Dutch Golden Age of cartography.
