Warhaffte contrafactur der Statt Bourdeaux.
€175
- Cartographer
- Sebastian Münster
- Date
- 1588
- Publication
- Cosmographia Universalis · Basel, Sebastian Petri (Henricpetri)
- Subject
- Bordeaux, France
- Condition
- Photographs show paper discolouration, foxing, folds and edge wear.
- Availability
- In stock. Subject to availability.
About this piece
A hand-coloured bird’s-eye view of Bordeaux from the 1588 German edition of Sebastian Münster’s Cosmographia, published in Basel by Sebastian Petri. The city is seen from above the Garonne, with sailing vessels along the waterfront and the streets rising behind them. Its walls, church towers and blocks of red roofs are enclosed in an ochre scrollwork border, topped by a small panel naming the city.
The ships at the lower edge give the scene a sense of scale. Behind them, the woodcut opens up the streets and courtyards in a way no ground-level view could. A printed key below the image helps the reader pick out sites, while the reverse pairs German letterpress with a large ornamental heading for Bordeaux.
The reds, greens and blue-green water remain visible across the double-page sheet. The paper shows a middle fold, paper discolouration and scattered spotting, particularly in the lower margin, with wear along the edges.