Sebastian Münster (1489–1552) - Cosmographia Universalis - Battaglia di San Giacomo sul Birsa - 1550

This original sheet is a precious Renaissance page taken from the Latin edition of 1550 of Sebastian Münster's Cosmographia universalis, printed in Basel by the publisher Heinrich Petri and part of Liber III dedicated to Germany. The text and the related woodcut document the bloody conflicts of the 15th century that saw the Swiss Confederates oppose the devastating incursions of French mercenary troops, known in Swiss chronicles as Armagnacs or "Armeniaci" (Armeniacorum copias). The narration retraces the crucial phases of the famous Battle of Saint James on Birsa in 1444 (Pugna apud S. Iacobum), describing the heroic yet tragic resistance of a small contingent of Swiss soldiers who took refuge in the leper hospital of Saint James, refusing to surrender and being decimated by the overwhelming enemy forces commanded by the Dauphin of France. The visual composition is enriched by a woodcut that illustrates a natural event interpreted at the time as a dire prodigy linked to these military disturbances: the dramatic moment when a lightning bolt strikes a city tower (fulmen e coelo lapsum feriens Basileae turrim), causing the collapse of the summit of the structure, the destruction of nearby roofs, and the death of men and beasts in the adjacent field. The chronicle ends by describing the subsequent peace negotiations begun between the cities of Basel, Bern, and Solothurn to restore order and put an end to the territorial devastations.

Dimensions 30 x 20 cm
Will be shipped by courier