Antique Map Auction Sale No. 127 - closed 2/25/2009
This beautiful and popular map of the Americas was emulated by many cartographers and went through numerous editions. Originally issued by Jodocus Hondius in 1618 with carte-a-figures borders, it was derived from two earlier maps by Blaeu. The North Pole depicts Frobisher's theory of the Northwest Passage and the South Pole shows the long-held notion of the mythical southern continent. North America retains the peninsular California and the East Coast is beginning to take shape, although it still lacks detail in the mid-Atlantic region. In the Southwest the famous seven cities of Cibola appear on the banks of a large lake. In South America, the fictional Parime Lacus lies on the Equator, and there are tiny engraved scenes, one detailing a cannibalistic feast. Two stylized insets of the polar regions are enclosed in strapwork cartouches. The map is richly ornamented with a strapwork title cartouche, fleets of ships and sea monsters.