Európa - Franciaország / Párizs; Matthäus Merian the Elder - Map of Paris from Neuwe Archontologia Cosmica - 1621-1650

SPECTACULAR ANTIQUE MAP OF PARIS by Matthäus Merian the Elder (1593-1650) from Johann Ludwig Gottfried and Matthäus Merian's "Neuwe Archontologia Cosmica", published in Frankfurt, 1638. Original copper-engraved view of Paris on two conjoined sheets and watermarked (size H 270 x W 702 mm or 10.7 by 27.7 inches). PLEASE NOTE: the buyer will also receive a Certificate of Authenticity (COA). The view also offers a self-portrait of Merian from behind while she is drawing Paris, and marked at the bottom left: "Math: Merian ad vivum delineavit" (Drawn live by Matthäus Merian). This is a beautiful bird's eye panorama of Paris as viewed from the South with a key beneath noting 56 places of interest within the city like (Bastille, Notre Dame, Louvre, Sorbonne, etc...). Matthäus Merian the Elder was a Swiss engraver born in Basel and beginning his career in Zürich where he learned the art of copperplate engraving. In 1618 he moved to Frankfurt to work for the publisher Johann Theodor de Bry (1561-1623). To complete the documentation, the photo of the title of the work is also published with the name of the artists who created the prints.

The magnificent view shows the 56 most important sites of Paris and a panorama of the Île-de-France at the time of King Louis XIII. Paris is shown as seen from present-day Parc des Buttes-Chaumont, looking towards the southwest, over the Hospitale de S. Louis, to the vast but now long-vanished fortifications of Etienne Marcel, across the city, Notre Dame just left of center, the Bastille fortress is clearly visible at far left, the Louvre and the Tuileries gardens to the right, continuing across the river Seine to the left-bank and the open countryside beyond. With numbered key to 56 locations including Sorbonne, Faubourg St. Jaques, Les Capucins, etc... The foreground includes a back-view self-portrait of the artist seated on a boulder sketching. The ship on the coat of arms of Paris (upper right corner) represents the city's trade and commerce. Merian’s best known works are detailed town views which, due to their accuracy and artistry, form a valuable record of European urban life in the first half of the 17th century.

Title and Description: This copper engraving (Parys/Paris) is part of "Neuwe Archontologia Cosmica" published by Gottfried and Merian in Frankfurt, 1638. Sheet size: H 270 x W 702 mm or 10.7 by 27.7 inches. The engraving is in good condition (as shown in the photo), there are NO cuts or holes or restorations, only few small imperfections due to age. No text on the back. Beautiful detailed engraving drawn with great skill, printed on laid paper and watermarked (see photo). Evidence of old folds, map trimmed to the mark, visible in places, complete view with minimal margins.

References: Fauser - #10606; Boutier - #67.

Author: Matthäus Merian the Elder (1593-1650), the leading German/Swiss illustrator of the 17th century, was born in Basel in 1593. He learned the art of copperplate engraving in Zurich and subsequently worked and studied in Strasbourg, Nancy, Paris, and the Low Countries. In 1618 he went to Frankfurt, wherein in 1618, he married the eldest daughter of Johann Theodor de Bry, publisher and engraver. After de Bry died in 1623, he took over his business. De Bry’s business remained in Merian’s family until 1726, when a fire destroyed it. In 1635 he began the series Theatrum Europaeum. Between 1642 and 1688, he published Martin Zeiller’s Topographia Germaniae, with more than 2,000 plates etched and engraved by himself and his sons Matthäus and Caspar. He also took over and completed the later parts and editions of the Grand Voyages and Petits Voyages, initially started by de Bry in 1590. He was also the father of Maria Sibylla Merian, one of the greatest natural history artists of the late 17th and early 18th centuries. Matthäus Merian died after in 1650 in Bad Schwalbach near Wiesbaden, Germany.

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