Saintes, by Georg Braun and Frans Hogenberg. 1596-1640
COMMENTARY BY BRAUN: "Saintes is the capital of the Santones, situated on the Charente: this city was called Mediolanum Santonum by Ptolemy; Mediolanum was a bishopric from the time of the Apostles onwards. The ancient walls and the other antiquities show that Mediolanum was formerly the capital of the Santones; the Romans subsequently changed the name and gave it another name after the people who lived there."
This plate is shown in a bird's-eye view from the east, from the modern-day Faubourg des Dames, offering a clear overview of Saintes and the surrounding countryside. The city, which had 15,000 inhabitants even in Roman times, is constructed like a fortress. Various ruins testify to its Roman past, including a triumphal arch of Germanicus, thermal baths and an amphitheatre (Q). In the city centre stands the cathedral of Saint-Pierre (I). On the hill to the left, outside the city walls, rises the pilgrimage church of Saint-Eutrope, today only partly intact, which forms one of the stations along the Way of St James. Also famous is the Abbaye aux Dames (5) on the opposite bank of the Charente, a former nunnery with its abbey of Sainte-Marie-des-Dames. During the Wars of Religion in France, Saintes became the Huguenots' cultural and religious centre. Today the town near the west coast of France has 25,000 inhabitants. (Taschen)
Braun G. & Hogenberg F. and the Civitates Orbis Terrarum.
The Civitates Orbis Terrarum, or the "Braun & Hogenberg", is a six-volume town atlas and the greatest book of town views and plans ever published: 363 engravings, sometimes beautifully coloured. It was one of the best-selling works in the last quarter of the 16th century. Georg Braun wrote the text accompanying the plans and views on the verso. A large number of the plates were engraved after the original drawings of Joris Hoefnagel (1542-1600), who was a professional artist. The first volume was published in Latin in 1572, the sixth volume in 1617. Frans Hogenberg created the tables for volumes I through IV, and Simon van den Neuwel created those for volumes V and VI. Other contributors were cartographer Daniel Freese, and Heinrich Rantzau. Works by Jacob van Deventer, Sebastian Münster, and Johannes Stumpf were also used. Translations appeared in German and French.
Following the original publication of Volume 1 of the Civitates in 1572, seven further editions of 1575, 1577, 1582, 1588, 1593, 1599 and 1612 can be identified. Vol.2, first issued in 1575, was followed by further editions in 1597 and in 1612. The next volumes appeared in 1581, 1588, 1593, 1599 and 1606. The German translation of the first volume appeared from 1574 on and the French edition from 1575 on.
Several printers were involved: Theodor Graminaeus, Heinrich von Aich, Gottfried von Kempen, Johannis Sinniger, Bertram Buchholtz and Peter von Brachel, who all worked in Cologne.
Georg Braun (1541-1622)
Georg Braun was born in Cologne in 1541. After his studies in Cologne, he entered the Jesuit Order as a novice. In 1561 he obtained his bachelor's degree and in 1562 his Magister Artium. Although he left the Jesuit Order, he studied theology, gaining a licentiate in theology.
Frans Hogenberg (1535-1590)
Frans Hogenberg was a Flemish and German painter, engraver, and mapmaker. He was born in Mechelen as the son of Nicolaas Hogenberg.
By the end of the 1560s Frans Hogenberg was employed upon Abraham Ortelius's Theatrum Orbis Terrarum, published in 1570; he is named as an engraver of numerous maps. In 1568 he was banned from Antwerp by the Duke of Alva and travelled to London, where he stayed a few years before emigrating to Cologne. There he immediately embarked on his two most important works, the Civitates published from 1572 and the Geschichtsblätter, which appeared in several series from 1569 until about 1587.
Thanks to such large scale projects as the Geschichtsblätter and the Civitates, Hogenberg's social circumstances improved with each passing year. He died as a wealthy man in Cologne in 1590.
Saintes - En ce pourtrait de la vile et cité de Saintes, Chef de la Comté de Saintonge en Guienne, . . .
Item Number: 16668 Authenticity Guarantee
Category: Antique maps > Europe > France - Cities
Old, antique bird’s-eye view plan of Saintes, by Georg Braun and Frans Hogenberg.
Title: Saintes - En ce pourtrait de la vile et cité de Saintes, Chef de la Comté de Saintonge en Guienne, . . .
Date of the first edition: 1596.
Date of this map: 1596-1640.
Copper engraving, printed on paper.
Size (not including margins): 360 x 460mm (14.17 x 18.11 inches).
Verso: Latin text.
Condition: Excellent, superb old colour.
Condition Rating: A+.
From: Civitates Orbis Terrarum, ... Part 5. Köln, 1596-1640.
COMMENTARY BY BRAUN: "Saintes is the capital of the Santones, situated on the Charente: this city was called Mediolanum Santonum by Ptolemy; Mediolanum was a bishopric from the time of the Apostles onwards. The ancient walls and the other antiquities show that Mediolanum was formerly the capital of the Santones; the Romans subsequently changed the name and gave it another name after the people who lived there."
This plate is shown in a bird's-eye view from the east, from the modern-day Faubourg des Dames, offering a clear overview of Saintes and the surrounding countryside. The city, which had 15,000 inhabitants even in Roman times, is constructed like a fortress. Various ruins testify to its Roman past, including a triumphal arch of Germanicus, thermal baths and an amphitheatre (Q). In the city centre stands the cathedral of Saint-Pierre (I). On the hill to the left, outside the city walls, rises the pilgrimage church of Saint-Eutrope, today only partly intact, which forms one of the stations along the Way of St James. Also famous is the Abbaye aux Dames (5) on the opposite bank of the Charente, a former nunnery with its abbey of Sainte-Marie-des-Dames. During the Wars of Religion in France, Saintes became the Huguenots' cultural and religious centre. Today the town near the west coast of France has 25,000 inhabitants. (Taschen)
Braun G. & Hogenberg F. and the Civitates Orbis Terrarum.
The Civitates Orbis Terrarum, or the "Braun & Hogenberg", is a six-volume town atlas and the greatest book of town views and plans ever published: 363 engravings, sometimes beautifully coloured. It was one of the best-selling works in the last quarter of the 16th century. Georg Braun wrote the text accompanying the plans and views on the verso. A large number of the plates were engraved after the original drawings of Joris Hoefnagel (1542-1600), who was a professional artist. The first volume was published in Latin in 1572, the sixth volume in 1617. Frans Hogenberg created the tables for volumes I through IV, and Simon van den Neuwel created those for volumes V and VI. Other contributors were cartographer Daniel Freese, and Heinrich Rantzau. Works by Jacob van Deventer, Sebastian Münster, and Johannes Stumpf were also used. Translations appeared in German and French.
Following the original publication of Volume 1 of the Civitates in 1572, seven further editions of 1575, 1577, 1582, 1588, 1593, 1599 and 1612 can be identified. Vol.2, first issued in 1575, was followed by further editions in 1597 and in 1612. The next volumes appeared in 1581, 1588, 1593, 1599 and 1606. The German translation of the first volume appeared from 1574 on and the French edition from 1575 on.
Several printers were involved: Theodor Graminaeus, Heinrich von Aich, Gottfried von Kempen, Johannis Sinniger, Bertram Buchholtz and Peter von Brachel, who all worked in Cologne.
Georg Braun (1541-1622)
Georg Braun was born in Cologne in 1541. After his studies in Cologne, he entered the Jesuit Order as a novice. In 1561 he obtained his bachelor's degree and in 1562 his Magister Artium. Although he left the Jesuit Order, he studied theology, gaining a licentiate in theology.
Frans Hogenberg (1535-1590)
Frans Hogenberg was a Flemish and German painter, engraver, and mapmaker. He was born in Mechelen as the son of Nicolaas Hogenberg.
By the end of the 1560s Frans Hogenberg was employed upon Abraham Ortelius's Theatrum Orbis Terrarum, published in 1570; he is named as an engraver of numerous maps. In 1568 he was banned from Antwerp by the Duke of Alva and travelled to London, where he stayed a few years before emigrating to Cologne. There he immediately embarked on his two most important works, the Civitates published from 1572 and the Geschichtsblätter, which appeared in several series from 1569 until about 1587.
Thanks to such large scale projects as the Geschichtsblätter and the Civitates, Hogenberg's social circumstances improved with each passing year. He died as a wealthy man in Cologne in 1590.