1630 / 1640 Blaeu Map of Asia: Superb Original Color

This is a lovely, original-color example of Willem Blaeu's 1630 map of Asia in its 1640 atlas edition. It is among the most sought-after maps of the Dutch Golden Age of cartography, marking a significant advancement over the works of Ortelius, Mercator, and Hondius. It reflects the considerable progress the Dutch had made in their understanding of Eastern geography beginning in the late 16th century. The southern coast shows the benefit of the Dutch East India Company's forays to the Spice Islands; the north and east parts of Asia would remain obscure until the latter part of the century.

The Map

Blaeu's map is essentially a reduced version of his 1608 wall map, itself the standard for most mapping of Asia until the last quarter of the 17th century. This map, first engraved in 1617, is particularly prized for its clarity and sharpness, presenting copious detail (and its many decorative features) without sacrificing legibility. The coastline, in particular, is rich in toponomy, and the overall shape of the continent is mostly accurate. Points within the continent, nonetheless, reveal the persistent European ignorance of Asia's interior that would last into the second half of the century. For example, the Caspian Sea here spans further east-to-west than north-to-south, an error typical of 16th-century maps. Japan and Korea follow the Portuguese model first published in the 1580s by Ortelius - with Hokkaido absent and Korea a slender island.

The Cities

Along the top border of the map are nine medallions containing views of Asian cities: the Sri Lankan entrepôt of Candy and the southwestern Indian ports of Calicut and Goa; Damascus and Jerusalem in the Levant; the Arabian port of Aden; Hormuz at the mouth of the Persian Gulf and the spice ports of Bantam and Macao. These emphasize both the religious centers of the Near East and the key trade cities fueling Dutch ascendency. Blaeu's source for these views is the Braun and Hogenberg Civitates Orbis Terrarum, the first printed 'town book.'

Cartes à Figures

During the Dutch Golden Age of mapmaking in the first half of the 17th century, decorative elements reached a height alluded to but seldom matched in later periods. 'Cartes à Figures,' that is, maps with figural decorative borders, were the pinnacle of Dutch decorative cartography. These decorations were not without purpose. Atlas maps of the day were not meant to guide travel but rather to inform the literate layperson. The decorative border of this map captures the character of Asian cities, peoples, attire, and daily life. Each vignette typically pairs a man and a woman representative of a specific region. In Blaeu's Asia, these include Syrians, Arabians, Persians, Filipinos, Sumatrans, Javans, Moluccans, Chinese, Russians, and Tatars.

Cartes à figures were deluxe productions and seldom produced for narrow, regional maps save in scarce separate issues, and not all mapmakers included them in regular atlases. Willem Blaeu's world and continental maps are considered classics of the form.

Publication History and Census

This map was first engraved in 1617 and offered as a separate issue. This first state can be distinguished by the author's imprint, 'Auctore Guil. Janssonio.' Atlas editions - such as this example - show the name changed to reflect Blaeu's adoption of his father's nickname (Blaeu), a move the mapmaker made to distinguish himself from competitor Jan Jansson. These first appeared in Blaeu's 1630 Appendix; thereafter, the map was included in Blaeu's atlases through 1672. At some point, the plate developed a crack near the centerfold. The present example shows no evidence of this, confirming it as a second state. No printings later than 1670 are known, indicating that the copperplate was among those destroyed in the great fire that finished the company. The present example conforms typographically to examples found in Blaeu's 1640 Theatrum Orbis Terrarum. The map and atlas are well-represented in institutional collections. Examples with original color of this quality and condition have nonetheless grown scarce on the market.