A wonderful decoration, a memento of your genealogical origins or a lasting investment. There are plenty of good reasons to buy an antique map or city plan. Harald Fredriks knows all about this, which is why, as both auctioneer and aficionado, he puts together wonderful cartographic auctions.

Harald discovered his passion during his time at the Ministry of Defence. As a ‘geographic information officer’, he had to analyse and map (potential) mission areas using not just satellite images but often recent or, if not available, outdated maps. That was enough to pique his interest and, after working in the army for almost ten years, he established a flourishing antiquarian cartographic shop. Maps, city plans, topographical prints and cityscapes: Harald has handled them all.

Auctioneering fits him like a glove. He knows most antiquarians in the relatively small cartographic world personally. Many special maps are put up for auction every week. Harald would most like to see rare maps from the era of the Dutch United East India Company (VOC), with secret trade routes. Sadly the chance of this happening is quite small given how rare such maps are. He also likes to include more ‘ordinary’ cartographic charts in his auctions, to ensure buyers have a varied and attractive selection to choose from.

• Worked as geographic information officer with the Dutch Ministry of Defence
• Boasts over 17 years' experience
• Set up a flourishing cartographic business