Siscara Ibáñez, Juan de (sold) (Císcara, Siscarra)
Juan de Siscara Ibáñez (Císcara, Siscarra; May 22, 1633 - December 23, 1690) was a Spanish engineer, primarily known for his design of fortresses in Spanish held territories in America. Native to Madrid, he in 1663 was posted to Santiago de Cuba as an engineer. Named Chief Engineer of Cuba and Florida, he would plan the new intramuros of Santiago de Cuba, plotting out as well refinements to the city grid in 1668 and 1669. In 1674, he began the execution of a long-planned defensive wall for Havana; the wall facing the entrance to the harbor was completed in 1680; by 1688 this would include the land-facing wall separating the city from its landward suburbs. Meanwhile, he was sent to St. Augustine, Florida, to assist in the design of the Spanish Castillo de San Marcos. He is associated with no printed maps directly: a 1691 manuscript plan of Havana is attributed to him, which either contradicts his assumed date of death, or reflects a later revision by a different hand.
AKA: Císcara, Siscarra
Earliest Accurate Printed Plan and Chart of Havana.
De Stad en Haven van Havana, op't Eÿland Cuba, met alle desselfs Droogtens en Dieptens...
sold
- Digital Map Information
- Suitable for large format printing
- Full resolution TIFF file
- ICC color profile embedded
- Delivered instantly via download link
This is a rare, beautifully engraved map and plan of Havana and its bay by the Dutch chart maker Johannes van Keulen. Its dating is not well understood, but it can be placed c. 1720 on contextual grounds. It is the earliest printed, accurate charting of Havana Bay and the earliest accurate depiction of Old Havana. The chart reflects a profound shift in Dutch-Spanish relations, documenting the emergence of robust commercial cooperation following the War of Spanish Succession (1701 - 1714) after more than 150 years of political and military hostility. (more details)