Gerardus Mercator (1512-1594) / Jodocus Hondius (1563-1612). Iaponia (Japan) (Amsterdam: 1606-1620). Copperplate engraving with attractive hand color. 13 3/8 x 17 3/8 in. at neat line. Sheet: 17 5/8 x 21 ¼ in. with wide margins. Strong impression with show-through from text on verso. French text edition. Very good condition.
$2,700.00
Regarded as one of the earliest and finest Dutch maps of the region, it was first published in 1606. It shows one of the greatest cartographic myths with Korea depicted as an island. The geography was largely derived from earlier Portuguese maps (such as those by Luís Teixeira), reflecting the Jesuit presence in Japan at the time. The three main islands of Japan are featured, and a portion of China.
Decorative elements such as sea monsters, a Japanese junk, and a Dutch galleon are illustrated. This map can be distinguished from the later Janssonius edition, which replaces the junk with a European vessel.
Considered a significant milestone in Japanese cartography, this map served as the standard representation of the region until Martino Martini’s (Portuguese) map of 1655.
Cartographer Jodocus Hondius acquired the original copper plates of the famous Gerardus Mercator in 1604. Following Jodocus’s death in 1612, his widow, Colletta van den Keere, and their children (including Henricus Hondius) continued the firm and published the atlases under the Hondius name until 1620.
This fine example offers a fascinating glimpse into early 17th-century European geographic knowledge of the Far East.
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