Jansson, Jan “Septentrionalium Terrarum Descript”

Jan Jansson (1588-1664).  "Septentrionalium Terrarum Descript." 

Amsterdam: J. Jansson, ca. 1635.  From Atlas Minor.  5 5/8 x 7 7/8 (neat lines).  Engraving.  Hand color.  Very good condition.  Slight bleed thru of text on verso.  Else, very good condition.  A/A

A fine miniature map of the North Pole that was first issued in 1628 being a reduced copy of the first separate map of the North Polar Region.  Several fictitious islands, including Frisland, appear in the North Atlantic. In 1606, Jodocus Hondius acquired the plates from the famous Gerard Mercator Atlas, and a year later he issued a reduced version of this atlas, entitled the Atlas Minor.  While the maps were not as detailed as those of the folio edition, they were careful reductions and the size made them much for handy for general use, so this atlas proved quite popular.  Jansson joined the firm in 1633 which continued to produce a series of miniature “Mercator” atlases throughout the seventeenth century.