Sea Monsters & Fantastic Sea Creatures
Title: „Meerwunder und seltzame Thier/ wie die in den Mitnächtigen Ländern/ im Meer…“
A very decorative depiction of various fantastic sea creatures and monsters. Sebastian Münster designed this wood cut after a design by Oglaus Magnus from „Carta Marina“, verso - text in German.
Cartographer: Sebastian Münster, “Cosmographey“, Basel around 1550
Artist & block cutter: Hans Rudolf Manuel Deutsch (1525-1571), Initials: H R MD
Publisher: Heinrich Petri, Basel 1540/1550
Print size: 25,8 cm x 34 cm
Beautiful impression of this hand coloured wood cut, at the bottom margin a professional restored small tear, altogether in excellent condition.
sold
Sebastian Münster (1488 Ingelheim - Basel 1552). Cosmographer, cartographer and Christian Hebraist.
Georg Reisch, one of his famous teachers, a cosmographer, scholar and writer of the encyclopedia „Margarita Philosophica“, inspired Münster to study geography, Hebraic and science. Münster translated Ptolemy's „Geographia“ from Greek to Latin and published it together with 48 maps, created after Ptolemy's descriptions. The first edition was published by Heinrich Petri, Basel 1540.
Münster's main work, the „Cosmographia“, a world history written by several historians and richly illustrated by impoprtant artists of his time, kept him busy for many years. The first edition was published in Latin by Heinrich Petri, Basel 1544. Included was a set of maps, with a world map and for the first time maps of the 4 continents: Europe, America, Africa and Asia. All the other maps published show more detailed areas of Europe, Africa and Asia. The „Cosmographia“ had been reissued, revised and extended for many times and was published in many different languages till 1628. It was one of the most successful and popular books of the 16th century. Münster also published many other works, e.g. several Habrew grammars.