Belgium - Mechelen (Malines); Matthäus Merian il Vecchio (1593–1650) - MECHELEN - 1651-1660

Splendid and fascinating seventeenth-century panoramic view printed on contemporary laid paper, originally headed in the central upper part with the word “Mechelen.” This refined work of graphic art bears the prestigious signature of the great German master engraver Matthäus Merian the Elder (1593–1650) and was printed in Frankfurt am Main to illustrate the famous volumes of the Topographia geographical series. The sheet constitutes a precious and faithful iconographic testimony of the urban profile of the Belgian city of Malines (Mechelen) in the mid-seventeenth century, captured with a masterful blend of documentary rigor and Northern European artistic sensibility. The composition unfolds in a wide horizontal sweep that contrasts the serenity of the countryside in the foreground — plowed fields in geometric furrows, leafy trees on the left, and a large windmill on the right — with the dense forest of spires and roofs that defines the fortified city. Within the skyline stand out for their grandeur and execution the city’s principal sacred buildings, clearly identified by contemporaneous calligraphic inscriptions impressed over the roofs, including the monumental Cathedral of Saint Rombout (St. Rombout) with its famous unfinished tower and the Church of Saint John (St. Jan). This engraving represents a valuable and evocative testimony of seventeenth-century European vedutism, ideal for discerning collectors of historical prints or as an important antique display piece. Dimensions 32 x 54 cm Will be shipped by courier.