Mercator, Rumold (1541 - December 31, 1599)

Rumold Mercator (1541 - December 31, 1599) was a Dutch cartographer, son of the famous cartographer Gerard Mercator (1512 - 1594), and the caretaker of his illustrious father's work. He began producing maps prior to his father's 1594 death, and completed much of his work that was left unfinished. He would publish, supplemented with his own maps, Gerard Mercator's incomplete Atlas in 1595. This work would include his 1587 world map, and continental maps by his nephews Gerardus Mercator junior and Michael Mercator - using the elder Mercator's world map as their source. Rumold lacked his father's genius and passion for mapmaking and under his leadership, and faced with competition from Ortelius, the firm declined until his own 1599 death. Afterwards, the Mercator map plates were acquired by Henricus Hondius II (1597 - 1651), who republished them extensively, re-establishing Mercator's position as the premier cartographer of the Dutch Golden Age.