Ischia, Italy, 1603 - Petrus Bertius

A miniature copper engraving of Ischia, the volcanic island in the Gulf of Naples, published in Amsterdam in 1603. It comes from the early Latin version of Barent Langenes’s pocket atlas Caert Thresoor, with revised text by Petrus Bertius. This impression retains its contemporary hand colouring.

South is at the top, so the island takes a moment to recognise from a modern map. Engraved hills, coloured settlements and a finely hatched sea define the landscape. The blue-framed cartouche reads Ischia insula. On the reverse, the Latin text headed Descriptio Ischiae gives the small engraving its setting within the book.

Read with the south at the top, the outline takes on a different balance. The engraving uses hills to describe the interior and a finely worked sea to give the island a distinct edge. The Latin heading on the reverse is a reminder that the map originally formed part of a short written account.

The atlas format brings the coastline and the interior into a space small enough to take in at a glance. Look again and the fine lines around the settlements and hills reveal how much was fitted into that space. The engraving measures 8.5 × 12.3 cm on an 11 × 17.5 cm sheet. Good condition, with a few small spots in the margins.