Europe - Netherlands; Verdussen - Les Pais Bas où sont Remarquées les Acquisitions de la France Jusques à la Treve - 1725

Technical sheet

Title: The Netherlands where are Noted the French Acquisitions Up to the Truce. Chart of the historic Netherlands and of neighboring regions, with indication of French territorial acquisitions.
Author: I. Peeters.
Engraver: Jacobus Harrewijn (1660–1727); signed “Harrewijn fecit” under the cartouche.
Designer: I. Peeters.
Publisher: Juan Bautista Verdussen.
Place: Antwerp.
Period: 1725.
Technique: Copperplate engraving on brass, executed by aquaforte and burin, with period hand coloring at the borders and on some ornamental elements.
Support: Rag paper.
Dimensions: Sheet 19 × 20 cm; impression 18 × 14.5 cm.
Composition: Single plate, with central vertical fold; title within a figured cartouche, wind rose, coat of arms and two graphic scales. Verso without printed text.

Description

Map of the historic Netherlands, extended to the northern regions of France and the Rhineland territories, engraved by Jacobus Harrewijn and published in Antwerp in 1725. The title highlights the French territorial acquisitions “up to the truce,” giving the representation a geographic and political character.
The map includes the Dutch provinces, Flanders, Brabant, Hainaut and Luxembourg, with part of Picardy, Artois and the Rhine region. Cities, waterways and territorial divisions are gathered in a small-format composition, in which the coloring of the borders facilitates reading of the geographic articulation. The North Sea, named “Mer d’Allemagne,” hosts a wind rose with directional lines; along the western margin a portion of the English coast appears.
At the upper left, the title cartouche is set within a port scene with sailing ships, figures and goods, which recalls the maritime and commercial dimension of the represented territories. A coat of arms at the lower left and the miles scales of French and German miles at the lower right complete the decorative apparatus. The engraver’s signature is placed immediately below the cartouche.

Historical-artistic note

The work links the description of the territory to the reading of frontiers and political acquisitions. The reference to the truce belongs to the historical content of the map and should be distinguished from the publication date of the specimen.
The engraving combines a dense fabric of geographic information with an elaborate ornamental apparatus: the port scene, the wind rose and the coat of arms accompany the viewing without interrupting the continuity of the representation. The hand coloring emphasizes the borders and some decorative details, keeping the toponymy and the hydrographic network legible.

Condition Report

Map with slight yellowing, widespread browning and sporadic foxing spots. Central vertical fold marked, with browning along the fold line. Margins present on the four sides, with slight irregularities and small signs of peripheral wear.
On the verso, without printed text, there are brown stains and halos, more evident in the lower half, in addition to the transparency of the recto engraving. Sharp impression and coloring well distinguished; alterations to the support do not compromise the map’s legibility.