Title page of Theatrum Orbis Terrarum

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Title page of Theatrum Orbis Terrarum

Item Information

Title:
Title page of Theatrum Orbis Terrarum
Description:
With this frontispiece, Ortelius symbolically presents his atlas as a stage upon which readers could act out imaginary voyages to distant lands using the maps and the descriptive text in the book. The architecture of the “stage” here shows a female embodiment of Europe, ruling the world atop an entablature supported by Asia on the left holding her spices, and Africa on the right, radiating with the power of the sun. Below these more “civilized” figures lies a nude and “barbaric” America, holding the head of a European, near a bust of Magellanica representing the southern part of South America. These female figures symbolize perceived identities, stereotypes and fears of both the familiar parts of the world and the unknown.
Cartographer:
Ortelius, Abraham, 1527-1598
Publisher:
Diesth, Aegid. Coppenius (Aegidius Coppenius)
Date:
1570
Format:
Prints
Location:
Boston Public Library
Norman B. Leventhal Map Center
Collection (local):
Norman B. Leventhal Map Center Collection
Subjects:
Atlases--Early works to 1800
Extent:
1 page : hand color ; 37 x 23 cm
Terms of Use:
No known copyright restrictions.
No known restrictions on use.
Publisher:
Antverpiae : Apud Aegid. Coppenium Diesth
Language:
Latin
Notes:
Title page of Ortelius' Theatrum Orbis Terrarum. Antwerp, 1570.
Notes (exhibitions):
Exhibited: "Shakespeare’s Here and Everywhere" organized by the Norman B. Leventhal Map Center at the Boston Public Library, 2016-2017.
Identifier:
06_01_015038
Call #:
G1006 .T54 1570
Barcode:
39999065646802