Description by Georg Braun from the verso of the map: “Here can be seen in particular the skill of the inhabitants of Cadiz at catching fish. They wall off part of the sea with stones and rocks piled on top of each other, so that when the tide goes out they cannot escape and they can be caught very easily, even without a net, with the hands.”
This view shows Cadiz as seen across the narrow peninsula from the Atlantic. In the foreground stands the chapel of St. Sebastian and a group of fishermen illustrating the fishing method described in the text by Braun. Below the two central figures is Hercules, the legendary founder of the city, subduing two Nemean lions. The lower left inset shows seafarers casting lots for service on the galleys, and the inset to the far right features a bastion as a symbol of Cadiz’s military importance. The top borders of these cartouches are adorned with images of trophies from colonial regions: a “leopard dog” imported from the West Indies in 1565 stands over the left cartouche, and above the right cartouche is a Peruvian pica brought back in 1578. A giant fish caught in Cadiz in 1564 is pictured with the title at the top-center of the map.
Franz Hogenberg & Georg Braun
Gades Ab Occidus Insulae Partibus
Cologne, 1598
Engass Collection
This gorgeous map of London celebrates William and Mary’s ascent to the English throne after the Glorious Revolution. Portraits of the new Dutch monarchs are included on the map, as well as a view of London shortly after the fire. A ten point key bearing the names of Southwark landmarks appears in the top-left corner, with a more extensive key in the opposite corner, bearing the names of 148 locations on the other side of the Thames.
Johannes de Ram, (c.1648-1696)
Londini Angliae Regni Metropolis Novissima & Acurratissima autore Ioanne de Ram
Amsterdam, 1690
Smith Collection
The geology of Great Britain is beautifully illustrated in this bisected map from The Sketches and Notes of Professor Edward Forbes, F.R.S., President of the Royal Geological Society. The northern sheet is engraved with vignettes of skeletons, fossils, and the head of a Saber-toothed Tiger. The lower sheet identifies twenty-five different geologic formations, each denoted by hand coloring and engraved texture. Along the sides of the map are numerous fossil Ammonites.
Alexander Keith Johnston, (1804 -1871)
Geological & Palaeontogical Map of the British Islands. By A.K. Johnston. F.R.G.S.
Edinburgh, 1854
Smith Collection
Alexander Keith Johnston, (1804 -1871)
Geological & Palaeontogical Map of the British Islands. By A.K. Johnston. F.R.G.S.
Edinburgh, 1854
Smith Collection
This stunning map of the city of Edo (modern-day Tokyo) was produced in Japan during the middle of the 19th-century. It provides a view of the city as it was in the last days of the Tokugawa shogunate, a turbulent time marked by the transition away from sakoku, Japan’s traditional policy of isolation. The time period in which this map was created makes it one of the earliest maps of Edo to which Westerners could have had immediate access.
One of this map’s most striking features is its masterful use of color. The top of the map is edged with a band of vibrant blue, reflected in the perimeters of the water below. Several billowing clouds are painted in shades of red and orange across the map, providing an appealing contrast with the deep blue of the bodies of water and the bright green of the land.
Hiroshige II
Edo Meisho Ikken Sugoroku
Japan, 1857-1859
Osher Collection
The Libro di Benedetto Bordone is an Isolario, or “Island Book”, devoted to descriptions the known islands of the world through text and images. This isolario was intended as a commercial product and proved to be extremely popular, serving as an illustrated guide to the islands and peninsulas of the western ocean, the Mediterranean, the Indian Ocean and the Far East. It is particularly notable for its wide scope, its inclusion of recent discoveries in the Americas, its plan of the city of Mexico (Temistitan) before its destruction by Cortez, and for its world map on an oval projection, cited as the first of its kind.
Benedetto Bordone, (1450-1530)
Libro di Benedetto Bordone. Nel qual si ragiona de tutte l”isole del mondo, con li lor nomi antichi & moderni, historie, fauole, & modi del loro uiuere, & in qual parte del mare stanno, & in qual parallelo & clima giacciono. Con il breve di papa Leone … Et gratia et priuilegio della illustrissima Signoria com” in quelli appare
Venice, 1525
Osher Collection
Guest curated by Kyle Tzrinske & Vikki Walker
To be honest I thought my wife brought up Berlin as a map choice because we were watching Top Gun, just like every good American (half British) family should be doing on a Sunday afternoon. It made sense to me, the first movie to ever make me cry, was nothing without Berlin. Not that I cried during the amazing “TAKE MY BREATH AWAY” scene, no, all my tears were for the goose. But whatever, I figured we could simply quote some amazing lyrics for our BERLIN city map as written by our city’s proudest band.
Unfortunately, after seconds of deep investigation, I found out shockingly that the band BERLIN was actually from Los Angeles. What a load of bullshit. Next someone is going to try & sell me on the fact that TEXAS is a band from Glasgow &, worst yet, BEIRUT was formed by some indie-rock kid from New Mexico.
All I know is BOSTON is from Boston & that is the way it should be.
Enough about that & to cut it short, I went to my extra lovely wife & explained our little conundrum with the fakes from LA. She remedied the situation by pointing out the reason she suggested Berlin was because that is where we drunkenly & gleefully got engaged in a photo booth. She was hoping I would use this opportunity to lovingly convey the story of the summer we fell in love & got engaged in Berlin. I’m just having a little trouble getting past the fact that “TAKE MY BREATH AWAY” was not written by some Germans trying their best to grasp the English language.
This song is just not the same anymore.
I no longer like BERLIN the band, but I still love the city of Berlin & my wife.
Anonymous
City of Berlin
1900
Osher Map Library Collection
