Asie septentrionale et centrale - European Russia and Siberia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and northern China; Jodocus Hondius - Asie du Nord et centrale - Gravure sur cuivre, coloris d'époque - Nomades, Grande Muraille de Chine - 1621-1650

Old copper-engraved map of Tartary (Russia, Siberia, Central Asia, Mongolia, and northern China) hand-enhanced by Hondius, published in 1633 in the Mercator-Hondius Atlas.

It shows a large title cartouche decorated with masks, animal heads, and garlands of fruit. A second cartouche at the lower left bears Hondius’ address to the reader in Latin, and a scale in German miles appears in an orange cartouche. Two figures in traditional dress, a Tartarian and a Samoyed, are labeled “Tartari imago” and “Samogedi imago.” A nomadic camp scene, with tents, wheeled carts, and livestock, occupies the Jughoria region.

To the north, Novaya Zemlya is depicted with its many coastal toponyms and a note on Barentsz’s expeditions of 1594–1596. The Caspian Sea, the Great Wall of China, cities in vignettes, the reliefs in perspective, forests and lakes are finely engraved. There are also legendary mentions, such as Gog and Magog and the kingdom of the Priest Jean. In the right-hand corner, a portion of America and the Strait of Anian are indicated, with large calligraphic letters on the seas.

- Dimensions: on sheet: 56 x 47.5 cm; on the map plate: 46.9 x 35.3 cm
- Condition: Very good overall for a map of this age. Presence of a vertical central crease, a small brown stain in the upper left corner of the frame, and very light soiling. See photos for details.

Atlas Mercator-Hondius
- The atlas called “Mercator-Hondius” continues the work of Gerard Mercator, whose copper plates were purchased by Jodocus Hondius in 1604. This French edition of 1633 is signed by his son Henricus Hondius and his son-in-law Joannes Janssonius, who added new maps.

Jodocus Hondius
- Jodocus Hondius (Josse de Hondt, 1563-1612), a Flemish engraver and cartographer, was born in Wakken, Flanders. He settled in London around 1584, where he worked as an engraver. He returned to Amsterdam in 1593. In 1604, he acquired Gerard Mercator’s copper plates and published Mercator’s Atlas in 1606, supplemented with many new maps. After his death, his sons Jodocus II and Henricus continued the publication, later joined by Johannes Janssonius. It is in this context that the 1633 edition was published.