Sneek, Dokkum, Sloten, IJlst; G. Braun & F. Hogenberg – Sneecha (..) / Doccum / Sloten / Ylsta – 1588-1617

Description

Met decoratieve cartouches.

With decorative cartouches.

Details

• Type: carthografische prent
• Title: Sneecha, vulgo Sneeck (..) / Doccum / Sloten / Ylsta.. Plate 18
• Publication: 1588-1617
• Technique: kopergravure, oudtijds gekleurd
• Carthographer: Jacob van Deventer
• Publicer: Gottfried von Kempen e.a.
• Engraver: Frans Hogenberg e.a.
• Publiced in: Civitates Orbis Terrarum door Frans Hogenberg en George Braun in Köln
• Size print:  35.0 x 41.5 cm (13.8 x 16.3 inches)
• Size paper: 41.2 x 45.0 cm (16.2 x 17.7 inches)
• Verso: Latijnse tekst
• ID: 8010 O
• Source: Koeman II B&H 4 [18] / Taschen p. 293 / Fauser #13109

Condition: A

Zeer goed, gegeven de leeftijd. Middenvouw als uitgegeven, met ruime marges,

Very good, given age. Center fold as published, with wide margins. Nice clean print. General age-related toning and/or occasional minor defects from handling

Backgrounds

Sneek

Translation of the text in the cartouche: ‘Sneecha, commonly known as Sneek. A town in West Frisia.’

Commentary by George Braun: “The town itself is protected by its natural position rather than by walls: and it is still young, like almost all others in this area, for it has possessed a municipal charter and privileges for less than 200 years.”

This is a bird’s-eye view from the south of the town, which is surrounded by a wall and a moat. Very prominent on the left is the late Gothic ‘Grote Kerk’ or ‘Martinikerk’. To the north of this, less clearly identifiable, is the town hall (Stadhuis), which is integrated into a row of houses. The only part of the city wall that has been preserved is the gate at the southwest outlet, known as the ‘Waterpoort’, which today is the town’s landmark. Sneek probably developed from a settlement on a mound around the ‘Martinikerk’. It was first surrounded by a defence wall in 1300, and was granted a municipal carter in 1456. In the second quarter of the 16th century it was made into a fortress.

DOKKUM

Commentary by George Braun: ‘Dokkum, known to many in Latin Doccerum, lies in the County of Oostergo, two miles north of Leeuwarden […]. It was occupied by the Gueldrians during the Guelders War, and it was well fortified by a wall and moats of the type common at that time. But when they were defeated and driven out by the imperial troops, the wall was completely destroyed. The town remained unfortified from then until 1581, when the united cities of the Netherlands built new fortifications.’

This is a bird’s-eye view from the south of the city, which is surrounded by a moat. The Gothic ‘Martinikerk’ stands out clearly. Dokkum is first recorded in connection with the murder of St Boniface in the year AD 754, which therefore is considered to be the year of its founding. It was granted a municipal charter in 1298. A wall was built around the town in 1581/82 because of its strategic importance. From the 18th century onwards it increasingly lost its character as a coastal town due to land reclamation measures. Dokkum is the northernmost town in the Netherlands.

SLOTEN

Commentary by George Braun: ‘The little town of Sloten belongs to Sevenwouden and lies to the south in a low, marshy place, hardly a quarter of a mile from the coast, and two miles from Sneek. […] It is subject to the parish churches of two neighbouring villages, which may surprise some people for it has its own municipal charter, is ruled by its own authorities and in earlier times was well defended not only by nature but also by man-made fortifications.’

This is a bird’s-eye view from the south of the smallest of the Frisian towns, surrounded by a moat. Its founding can be traced back to the 13th century, and in 1426 it is recorded as a city. In 1523, during the Guelders War, it was the last Frisian stronghold to fall into the hands of the imperial troops; its fortifications were completely rebuilt in 1581/82.

IJLST

Commentary by George Braun: ‘IJlst, called Ilostum by some, and Iliacum in several old manuscripts, and situated only half an hour on foot from Sneek, is a long, narrow town stretching from north to south, and has only two streets with fairly deep water between them. It has nothing of special note other than its age, which is said to surpass that of Sneek as well as several other Frisian towns.’

This is a bird’s-eye view from the south of the little town. The church stands out clearly, as does a mill at the north end of the city. IJlst is about 3 km southwest of Sneek, and is the second smallest of the Frisian towns.

Frans Hogenberg & George Braun

Frans Hogenberg (1535-1590) was een belangrijke Brabantse carthograaf. Hij sympathiseerde met de hervorming en vluchtte van Antwerpen naar Duitsland. In Keulen richtte hij samen met Georg Braun een cartografische drukkerij-uitgeverij op. Georg Braun (1541 – 1622) was redacteur en kanunnik van de Dom van Keulen.

Frans Hogenberg (1535 – 1590) was a Flemish and German painter, engraver, and mapmaker. He was born in Mechelen as the son of Nicolaas Hogenberg. By the end of the 1560’s Frans Hogenberg was employed upon Abraham Ortelius’s Theatrum Orbis Terrarum, published in 1570; he is named as engraver of numerous maps. In 1568 he was bannend from Antwerp by the Duke of Alva and travelled to London, where he stayed a few years before emigrating to Cologne. There he immediately embarked on his two most important works, the Civitates published from 1572 and the Geschichtsblätter, which appeared in several series from 1569 until about 1587.

Georg Braun (1541 – 1622) was born in Cologne in 1541. After his studies in Cologne he entered the Jesuit Order as a novice. In 1561 he obtained his bachelor’s degree and in 1562 his Magister Artium. Although he left the Jesuit Order, he studied theology, gaining a licentiate in theology.

Civitates Orbis Terrarum

Braun en Hogenberg stelden in 1572 het stadsgezichtenboek Civitates Orbis Terrarum samen. Dit boek sloeg aan in Duitsland en raakte later overal bekend. Het zesde en laatste deel verscheen in 1617.  Het is de grootste verzameling plattegronden en illustraties die ooit is verschenen. Het boek is ontstaan tussen 1572 en 1617 en bevat 363 kaarten en stadsgezichten van alle belangrijke steden in Europa en steden in Azië, Afrika en Latijns-Amerika. Ruim honderd kunstenaars en cartografen hebben meegewerkt aan deze atlas, die niet alleen plattegronden van steden laat zien maar ook afbeeldingen van mensen in hun landelijke kleding, schepen en topografische afbeeldingen van stad en land. De atlas was bedoeld als gids voor de in 1570 verschenen wereldatlas Theatrum Orbis Terrarum van Abraham Ortelius die inderdaad een aantal bladen voor zijn wereldatlas gebruikt heeft.

The Civitates Orbis Terrarum, or the “Braun & Hogenberg”, is a six-volume town atlas and the greatest book of town views and plans ever published: 363 engravings, sometimes beautifully coloured. It was one of the best-selling works in the last quarter of the 16th century. Georg Braun wrote the text accompanying the plans and views on the verso. A large number of the plates were engraved after the original drawings of Joris Hoefnagel (1542-1600), who was a professional artist. The first volume was published in Latin in 1572, the sixth volume in 1617. Frans Hogenberg created the tables for volumes I through IV, and Simon van den Neuwel created those for volumes V and VI. Other contributors were cartographer Daniel Freese, and Heinrich Rantzau. Works by Jacob van Deventer, Cornelis Antonisz., Sebastian Münster, and Johannes Stumpf were also used. Translations appeared in German and French.

Following the original publication of Volume 1 of the Civitates in 1572, the next volumes appeared in 1575, 1581, 1588, 1598 and 1617. The German translation of the first volume appeared from 1574 on and the French edition from 1575 on.

Several printers were involved: Theodor Graminaeus, Heinrich von Aich, Gottfried von Kempen, Johannis Sinniger, Bertram Buchholtz and Peter von Brachel, who all worked in Cologne.