Original antique map with old hand colouring, possibly contemporary.
From Jansson's 'Atlas Novus'.
Created in the late 17th century, this map reflects the European interest in East Asia during this period. The hand colouring is old and could be contemporary.
It shows political and administrative boundaries, cities, towns, waterways, canals, landmarks, and mountains. Relief is depicted pictorially, a common technique in maps from this period.
The map features a decorative cartouche in the lower left corner, which includes title information and illustrations of figures likely representing Chinese officials or scholars.
It is amongst the most detailed maps of China from the period, and features the Great Wall.
Joh Van Loon engraved the map for Jansson following earlier collaborations, and it was included in Jansson's Novus Atlas.
Jansson was a renowned geographer and publisher of the seventeenth century, when the Dutch dominated map publishing in Europe.
Born in Arnhem, Jan was first exposed to the trade via his father, who was also a bookseller and publisher. His first maps date from 1616. In the 1630s, Jansson worked with his brother-in-law, Henricus Hondius. Their most successful venture was to reissue the Mercator-Hondius atlas, publishng the Atlas Novus with him and later expanded it to become the Atlas Major. Jansson is also well known for his volume of English county maps, published in 1646.
.Jansson died in Amsterdam in 1664.
