Hartmann Schedel, Secunda etas mundi, 1493

First Edition of Schedel’s Richly Illustrated World Map, 1493

Schedel’s map is one of the earliest obtainable World maps. It comes from the famous Liber Chronicarum, or Nuremberg Chronicle, published upon the return of Christopher Columbus to Europe after discovering the New World / America.

Based on the cartographic system of Claudius Ptolemy, whose geographic scholarship formed the foundation for map production in the fifteenth century, this map contained little detail and omitted Scandinavia, southern Africa, the Far East, and depicted the Indian Ocean as landlocked. The map reveals the medieval imagination with a border including twelve wind-heads, the world supported by three biblical figures – Ham, Shem, and Japhet – while the marginal panel consists of exotic figures believed to exist in foreign lands. Additional figures are shown on the verso. Among the scenes are a six-armed man, a centaur, a four-eyed man, a dog-headed man from the Simien Mountains in Ethiopia, a cyclops, a man with a single giant foot, a man with a huge lower lip, a man with ears hanging down to his waist, and other fanciful, colorful creatures.

The first edition of the map is in Latin text (rather than German) and places the map at the top with the text at the bottom. The German edition has text above the map.

The woodblock cutters were Michael Wolgemut (1434-1519), the well-known teacher of Albrecht Durer between 1486-90. Scholarship has also recently shown that Durer may also have collaborated on this work since some of the cuts bear resemblance to his Apocalypse illustrations. The printing was carried out under the supervision of the famous scholar-printer Anton Koberger.

Hartmann Schedel was a prominent physician and writer, who amassed one of the largest private book collections of the 15th Century. Schedel’s work is illustrated by over 1800 woodcut images by Michael Wolgemut and his stepson Wilhelm Pleydenwurff.

The Liber Chronicarum, or Nuremberg Chronicle, is the most extensively illustrated book of the 15th century. The text by Hartmann Schedel sets out to chronicle the history of the world from its creation to the end of the 15th century, including topographical descriptions of all the major cities of the known world. The text and illustrations are beautifully blended to form pages that show a remarkable balance between the type and woodcut. The images include a fine early world map, a map of Europe, a creation series, a dance of death series, portraits of the saints (with their attributes), illustrated biblical and royal genealogies and the well-known series of panoramic city views.

Ref: Shirley, Mapping of the World, No. 19, Plate 25; Wilson, The Making of the Nuremberg Chronicle, p. 115, Plate 6.