1593 Cornelis De Jode Double Hemisphere Polar Projection World

This is a beautiful example of Cornelis De Jode's 1593 double-polar projection map of the world. It is among the most striking early world maps, and among the earliest to introduce the double hemispheric polar projection. Moreover, as a competitor to Ortelius' cartography, it is the sole obtainable map to preserve the innovative Guillaume Postel / Antwerp Unicum cartography. The map is moreover exceedingly rare, having been published in only a single edition.

The Sources

To differentiate his map from his competitor Ortelius' Mercator-derived maps, De Jode drew on an array of sources: predominantly the 1581 world map of Guillaume Postel, and an anonymous, c. 1587 globe known as the Antwerp Unicum. To these, De Jode applied his own geographical innovations to produce a remarkable fresh work. Postel's work and the Unicum each survive in only a single confirmed example, making this De Jode map the only acquirable work to preserve their content.

Postel

Guillaume Postel (1510 - 1581) was a French scholar and mystic whose wide-ranging output included a world map (Polo Aptata Nova Charta Universi) whose polar projection was the primary influence on the present composition. A woodcut on six sheets, this map was executed by Jean de Gourmont in 1581 and survives in a sole example at the Service Historique de la Marine. Postel's geography drew heavily on the 1564 Gerard de Jode / Abraham Ortelius cordiform world map. Postel's theories on the hypothetical southern continent and his interpretations of the Arctic thus figured prominently in this, the younger De Jode's 1593 map.

The Antwerp Unicum

The Antwerp Unicum, so-called because of its city of composition, the absence of other surviving examples, and its anonymous maker. The Unicum consists of a full set of terrestrial globe gores, which Shirley dates c. 1587 and scholar Marcel Destombes argues were engraved in Antwerp on behalf of the De Jodes. The Unicum is assiduous in citing its sources, which include Ortelius, Thevet, and Postel.

A Closer Look

Double-hemisphere projections were atypical in the 16th century, and this map, employing dual polar projections, is both unique and among the earliest to adopt this convention. The hemispheres are framed with turbulent clouds, in which eight wind-heads puff furiously. The map's title is presented at top in a pair of elegant, strapwork cartouches - the cartouche for the southern hemisphere is supported by faun-like gargoyles. Both hemispheres' oceans are neatly stippled, and the calligraphic engraving is of highest quality with text blocks are sharp and legible. The southern Atlantic sports both a sea monster and a pair of sailing ships.

The Arctic Islands

In composing this map, De Jode likely had access to both Postel's map and the Antwerp Unicum, as it contains elements unique to each. Scrutiny of the map's presentation of Mercator's four Arctic landmasses will show, for example, that the Arctic landmass directly north of Scandinavia is conflated with the island of Nova Zembla. This appears on both precursor maps. But on the De Jode, the island falling to the east of this 'Nova Zembla' is connected to the Siberian mainland. (Despite being referred to in text as 'the best island in the whole north.') The Postel map here illustrated a conglomeration of ice floes and described an ice bridge between the mainland and the island. The Unicum shows a misinterpretation of these ice floes as an isthmus, and it is this depiction - not that of the Postel - that De Jode follows. Curiously, an ice bridge did occasionally form in this region, linking the Siberian mainland with the Lyakhovsky Islands (New Siberian Archipelago) - known for its rich deposits of fossilized mammoth ivory. Although occasionally visited by trappers and fortune hunters during winter freezes, these islands were not documented until the late 18th century.

American Eastern Seaboard

On the other hand, the De Jode North American east coast includes elements drawn from the Postel that are not shared with the Antwerp Unicum, most notably the deep bay along the eastern seaboard. Postel drew this feature from the 1564 Ortelius wall map, although both maps offer different toponomy: the peninsula here is marked 'C. de S. Helena,' and at the extremity of the bay is the legendary city-of-gold of Norumbega. A rough, early Saint Lawrence can be discerned, derived ultimately from the reports of Cartier, and is most recognizable for the naming of Hochelaga (Montreal). A sketchy river system leading inland from Hochelaga, suggests at what may be an early, embryonic attempt at the Great Lakes.

De Jode's map includes several recognizable place names in the southeast: including Florida and Cape Canaveral. De Jode's spelling of this place, Cagnaveral, as well as its delineation, are drawn from the Ortelius' 1564 cordiform.

Japan and the West Coast

The positioning of Japan close to the American west coast, the multitude of Spice Islands, and the delineation of the Caribbean are drawn from Postel. The map includes several annotations pertinent to Japan. One describes its antipodean position in relation to Flanders - 'when it is midday here, in Japan it is the middle of the night.' A further Latin text in the South Atlantic describes the 1582-1584 Tenshō Embassy - a Japanese scholarly and diplomatic visit to the Vatican of Pope Gregory XIII (he was the first Pope to receive such). These notes are absent on both the Postel and the Antwerp Unicum. Their inclusion here emphasized the contemporary relevance of De Jode's map. Japan does not appear in a dedicated atlas map until 1595, so even the tentative detail here represents a significant advance.

The Southern Hemisphere

The Southern Hemisphere presented here is somewhat unique to De Jode. South America's detail largely conforms with Gerard De Jode's 1578 Americae Peruvi Aque Ita ut Postremum Detecta Traditur Recens Delineatio. It additionally references Postel's terminology Residuum Atlantidis meridiana Peru Pars (Residuum Peru Americae).

The southern hemisphere is dominated by a massive Terra Australis Incognita, extending northwards from the pole to absorb both Tierra del Fuego and New Guinea. Whereas Postel divided his southern hemisphere into two separate insets subordinate to his northern hemisphere, De Jode presents the hemispheres equally. The latter approach allows for a focused presentation of the speculative southern continent. A note on the coast nearest Africa suggests that the Portuguese had, from a promontory on the Cape of Good Hope, reported seeing a land mass to the south, but that nobody had actually found it. In addition to the place name 'Ter. Australis incognita,' De Jode employs the term 'Chasdia'. This too is drawn from Postel, appearing both in his book, Cosmographicae, and on his map.

A War of Maps

This map appeared only in the second and final 1593 edition of Gerard and Cornelis De Jode’s Speculum Orbis Terrarum. It is one of the maps added by Cornelis in to make the Speculum more competitive with Ortelius' Theatrum Orbis Terrarum, as well as current with late 16th century cartographical advances. Nonetheless, the Speculum was unable to break Ortelius' lock on the market and was printed in only one edition. After Cornelis’ death in 1600, the plates were purchased by Jan Baptist Vrients, then publishing Ortelius’ atlas, and suppressed (likely destroyed). There were no later printings of De Jode’s maps.

An Attractively Colored Example

Examples of this and De Jode's other maps are known both with and without color. We do not believe the present coloring to be recent, and it may be old. The palette conforms to another example held at the National Library of Australia, particularly as regards the reds, the coloring of clouds, and ocean highlighting below sea monsters.

Publication History and Census

This map was engraved after the 1587 prototype, with a multitude of improvements in topology and legibility. It was prepared for Cornelis De Jode's 1593 Speculum Orbis Terrarum. It appears in a single state with no further editions. We are aware of one separate example of the map in the National Library of Australia. Perhaps twenty-two examples of the 1593 Speculum are listed in OCLC.