Mercator Atlas of 1595

Mercator Atlas of 1595

Mercator's World Atlas of 1595 is undoubtedly the primary work of 16th century cartography. Even during his lifetime, the polymath Gerardus Mercator (1512–1594), whose fame extended even into the Islamic-Arab world, was celebrated as the Ptolemy of his time. He completed his largest project, the Atlas, sive Cosmographicae meditation de Fabrica Mundi et fabricati figura, only shortly before his death, it was thus posthumously published in 1595 by his son Rumold. The edition at hand assembles 57 double-sided maps and tables of this milestone of cartography, which still inspires with large overview maps of the world and detailed representations of individual countries and regions.

The Polymath from Flanders

Gerardus Mercator was born on March 5th, 1512 near Antwerp, in modern Belgium. After being accused of heresy in his homeland, he moved with his family to Duisburg in 1552, where he became professor of cosmography at the newly founded university. In 1537, he began producing globes, wall maps and scientific instruments made of copper, which he created as several commissions for Emperor Charles V (1500–1558). His greatest invention is the Mercator projection, which was first recorded in 1569 on a 18-sheet wall map of the world. It is the first accurate and geographically precise representation of the earth.

A Landmark Atlas

For his primary work, the polymath Mercator used the term "Atlas" for the first time to denote a collection of maps. Thus, the concept was style-forming for a whole genre and became the template for all following cartographic works. The aim of the engravings was to give an all-encompassing description of heaven and earth, including theology and history. With his five-part work, Mercator was able to fundamentally change the medieval worldview with new geographical information and to develop the most important navigation aid for travelers on land and water.

Precision Meets Aesthetics

However, this pioneering bound cartographic work not only captivates with scientific geographic knowledge, but also because of its artistically excellent paintings. This unique combination of precision and aesthetics can be seen in the blue waters with their small fishes and imposing ships, as well as in the magnificent landscapes and meadows, which shine in a lush green. Furthermore, each card carries a title in elaborate pen, which looks almost three-dimensional.