A magnificent and richly decorated map of the Guinea coast of West Africa, published by Joan Blaeu in Amsterdam between 1649 and 1655, with attractive early hand-colouring.

The map depicts an extensive stretch of the West African coastline, from Sierra Leone and Liberia in the west to the Gulf of Guinea and the coast of present-day Nigeria and Cameroon in the east. It encompasses the historical regions of Malagueta, Guinea, and Benin, along with numerous coastal settlements, rivers, trading stations, and inland territories.

The map provides a fascinating representation of European geographical knowledge of West Africa during the first half of the seventeenth century. The coastal regions are shown in considerable detail, reflecting their importance to Portuguese, Dutch and other European merchants, while the interior is represented through a combination of geographical information, indigenous place names, pictorial mountain ranges and decorative illustrations.

Particularly noteworthy are the numerous depictions of African wildlife. Elephants, lions and other animals appear throughout the interior, illustrating the European fascination with the natural history of the African continent. The representation of elephants also alludes to the importance of ivory in the region's international trade.

The Atlantic Ocean is embellished with several finely engraved sailing ships and an elaborate network of rhumb lines radiating from compass roses. The sea is identified by the large decorative inscription Oceanus Aethiopicus, reflecting the geographical terminology commonly employed by European cartographers of the period.

The most striking feature is the magnificent title cartouche occupying the lower centre of the map. Figures representing Africans surround it, along with monkeys, a parrot, and other exotic animals. The composition is richly coloured and reflects the Blaeu publishing house's elaborate decorative traditions.

In the lower right corner, two winged African putti carry a large elephant tusk, an explicit reference to the ivory trade. In the lower left, another ornamental cartouche contains a dedication to Nicolaes Tulp (1593–1674), the distinguished Amsterdam physician and civic official best known today as the subject of Rembrandt's celebrated painting The Anatomy Lesson of Dr Nicolaes Tulp (1632).

The map is also historically significant as a record of the growing Dutch commercial presence on the West African coast. During the seventeenth century, the Dutch West India Company established trading posts and fortifications along the coast, participating in the trade in gold, ivory and enslaved Africans. The region became an important centre of European maritime commerce and colonial competition.

A superb example of Dutch Golden Age cartography, distinguished by its magnificent decorative engraving, rich early colouring, numerous representations of African wildlife and important historical associations with Dutch maritime commerce and the exploration of West Africa.