Malta - Valletta; Henri de Beauvau - Malte - 1615

Technical data

Subject / Title:
Prospective view of the fortified city of Malta (La Valetta and the Grand Harbour)

Author / Cartographer / Engraver:
Henri de Beauvau (1575–1635)

Draftsman:
Not indicated

Publisher / Printer:
Jacob Garnich

Place:
Nancy, Duchy of Lorraine

Era / Date:
1615

Technique:
Copper-engraved engraving on copper (soft-ground etching and engraving) with original typographic text

Support:
Antique rag paper

Dimensions:

Sheet: ca. 23 × 17.5 cm
Engraving impression: ca. 16 × 11 cm

Composition:
Etching plate with original typographic text on recto and verso, taken from the famous Relation Journalière du Voyage du Levant by Henri de Beauvau, published in Nancy by Jacob Garnich in 1615. The plate includes a view of the city of Valletta (Malta) accompanied by a numbered legend with eleven topographical references.

Description

Rare original view of the city of Valletta, published in 1615 inside the Relation Journalière du Voyage du Levant, one of the most important French works devoted to travels in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant during the early decades of the 17th century.

The composition depicts, in perspective, the Grand Harbour area and the fortified city, highlighting the imposing defensive works carried out by the Knights of the Order of Saint John. The bastioned fortifications, moles, urban buildings, churches, towers and numerous vessels are rendered with strong graphic clarity, offering a valuable testimony to the island’s military and urban layout at a moment of particular strategic importance in the Mediterranean.

At the bottom there is a numbered legend identifying the main places represented, while the surrounding typographic text describes the author’s journey and his landing in Malta after staying in Alexandria. The engraving is thus not only a topographic view but also a significant historical document relating to the commercial, religious and diplomatic routes of the era.

The graphic layout, essential yet accurate, is typical of early 17th-century French publishing. The engraved line effectively combines etching and engraving, faithfully reproducing the arrangement of fortifications, the coastline, and the harbor’s organization with precision. Devoid of superfluous decorative elements, the plate favors documentary efficacy and legibility of the representation, a quality that characterizes Beauvau’s entire oeuvre.

Historical-artistic note

Henri de Beauvau (1575–1635), a Lorraine nobleman belonging to one of the oldest families of the French nobility, undertook between 1604 and 1605 a long voyage through the Eastern Mediterranean, visiting Egypt, the Holy Land, Cyprus, Crete, Malta and numerous other Levantine centers.

The travel account was published in 1615 in Nancy by Jacob Garnich under the title Relation Journalière du Voyage du Levant. The work represents one of the most important French testimonies devoted to the places of the Mediterranean at the beginning of the 17th century and stands out for its rich iconographic apparatus composed of geographical maps and original views.

The engravings present in the volume today constitute documents of notable historical and collectible interest, sought after by both enthusiasts of antique cartography and scholars of Mediterranean history, thanks to their descriptive precision and relative rarity on the antique market.

Condition Report

Copy in good overall conservation state.

Antique rag paper with natural and uniform patina of age. Professional restoration along the right margin, carried out with conservative and minimally invasive criteria. Light signs of wear and modest marginal oxidation compatible with the period. Original typographic text present on both recto and verso. Margins substantially complete. No coloring. Overall a well-preserved specimen with a pleasant presentation, suitable for display and specialized collecting.