NOTES

Terrestrial Globe of Mattheus Greuter, 1632.

Fig. 102. Terrestrial Globe of Mattheus Greuter, 1632.

In the south Atlantic and near the great southern continent, in a neat cartouch surmounted by the coat of arms of the Boncompagni family of Bologna, is the following dedication: “Illustrissimo et Excellentissimo Principi D. Iacobo Boncompagno Sorae Arcisque Duci Marchioni Vignolae Aquini Comiti Dno suo colendissimo. Mattheus Greuter Humill. obseqii ergo. D. D.” “To the Most Illustrious and Excellent Prince Lord Jacob Boncompagni, Duke of Sora and Arce, Marquis of Vignola and Count of Aquino,his Most Worshipful Lord Mattheus Greuter with humble obedience dedicates (this globe).” Iacopo Boncompagni, to whom Greuter dedicated his work, belonged to a famous family of Bologna.58He was born in Sora in the year 1613 and died in the year 1636. It was his great-grandfather, Hugo, who, in the year 1572, at the age of seventy, became Pope Gregory XIII, and who immortalized himself through his reform of the calendar. Iacopo, the grandfather of that member of the family to whom Greuter dedicated his globe, was in position, at the time of the elevation of his father to the Papacy, to have bestowed upon him great honors and riches. He was nominated Castellan of St. Angelo, and shortly thereafter, receiving the title General of the Holy Church, was sent to Ancona with a commission to defend the maritime regions of the papal states. He was soon thereafter admitted to the nobility of Rome, of the Kingdom of Naples, and of Venice. Through the riches of the Papacy he was able to purchase from Alfonso II of Este the Marquisate of Vignola for seventy-five thousand Roman scudi, the Duchy of Sora and of Arce from the Duke of Urbino for one hundred and ten thousand ducats, and the lands of Arpino and Roccasecca, together with the County of Aquino from Alfonso of Avalon, Marquis of Guasto, for one hundred and forty thousand ducats.

In the austral continent, and on the opposite side of the globe to that on which the dedication is placed is an address to the reader which is inscribed in a neat cartouch, reading “In ista quam exhibemus terreni globi descriptione omnium regionum iuxta et insularum quotquot hactenus ab Argonautis tam Lusitaniae quam aliarum gentium Naucleris visae et notatae loca in suo secundū longitudinem et latitudinem situ sum̄a sedulitate et industria disposita invenies quae res non solum Geographiae studiosis jucūda, verum etiam ijs, qui terras longe dissitas et sub alio sole calentes frequentent, maxime utilis futura est. Hūc igitur laborem nostrum ut tam gratis animis acceptatis sedulitate a nobisest obitus ex aequo omnes rogatos volo. Mattheus Greuter auctor. Excudit Roma Anno MDCXXXII.” “On this globe which we exhibit, you will find all the regions and islands as far as they have hitherto been seen and noted by navigators of Portugal and of other nations, set down in their proper positions of latitude and longitude with the greatest care and industry. This will be pleasing not only to students of geography but it will be especially useful to those who visit far distant lands (which are) warmed by another sun. I hope therefore that all those whom I ask will accept this labor of ours with as much gratitude as we have employed care upon it. Matthew Greuter maker. Made in Rome in the year 1632.” This address agrees with that on the Blaeu terrestrial globe of 1622 except that Blaeu wrote “vel etiam ab aliarum gentium ...,” whereas Greuter writes “tam Lusitaniae quam aliarum gentium ...,” and Blaeu inserted a reference to the loxodromes he had drawn on his map, which loxodromes Greuter, omitting, had therefore no occasion for such reference. In the inscription referring to the prime meridian, Greuter again borrowed from Blaeu with scarcely an alteration, as he did in his reference to recent discoveries made for the purpose of finding a way to the East by the North. Blaeu’s legend in the vicinity of the Tiborone Island, that near the Cape of Good Hope, and that near the Strait of Magellan were all copied literally by Greuter, and likewise that referring to the Le Maire Strait.

Greuter employed, in general, for the names of the regions of the Old World and for the seas, the Latin language, though he wrote “Mar del Nort” for the Atlantic and “Mar del Zur” for the Pacific. For the names of the New World he used the Spanish or the Portuguese, but occasionally the English, the French, the Dutch, or the language native to the region bearing the name. For the names of the cities he generally employed the language of the country or the Italian language.

Numerous ships are represented sailing the seas, and thepictures of sea monsters are many. A few wind roses adorn the map, but, as before stated, loxodrome lines, regarded in general at that time as of great importance to sailors who had occasion to make use of the chart or the globe, were omitted by Greuter.

Hudson Bay, which is left nameless, is represented without a definite coast line in the north, but through a wide and extended channel it opens into “Fretum Davis.” The St. Lawrence River appears to drain a lake, which may be taken from its location to be Lake Ontario; but the remaining four Great Lakes appear as one great inland sea with an outlet of somewhat uncertain character northward toward Hudson Bay. The geographical representations in this region are of special historical interest, as are indeed the geographical records in the several sections of North America, particularly in the South and the West.

As a companion to the terrestrial globe of the year 1632, Greuter prepared a celestial globe of the same dimensions, and with similar mountings, which he issued in the year 1636. He gives due credit, in one of his legends, to Tycho Brahe and to Willem Blaeu as sources of information for his representation of the stars and the several constellations, following, in particular, Blaeu’s globe of 1622. His explanatory legend reads “In hoc coelesti Globo notantur omnes stellae fixie an annum 1636 accom̄odatae q̄ iuxta observationē Nob. viri Tychonis Brahe, in max̄ illo Iansonii, an̄o 1622 edito, positae sunt additis stellis q̄ à peritissonauclero Petro Theod: circa Pol. Aust. notatae sū novisque Asterismis et stellis min. apparētib’, ab aliis sum̄ studio observatis, omnia in Philomatico gratia copiosa delineata. Romae, 1636, M. Greuter.” “In this celestial globe are noted all the fixed stars accommodated to the year 1636, which are placed (on the map) according to the observations of the noble Tycho Brahe in that great (work) of Jansson (Blaeu), edited in the year 1622, to which are added the stars noted by the skilful navigator Peter Theodori around the south pole andthe new and less apparent stars observed by others with great zeal. All these have been represented for the use of the student. At Rome, 1636. M. Greuter.” As to how much he thought should be added to or subtracted from the longitude of the fixed stars each year, to the end of taking due note of the precession of the equinoxes, he copied Plancius literally. The equatorial circle, the tropics, the polar circles, the equinoxes, the solstitial colures, the ecliptic, and twelve meridians are all represented. The constellations include the Ptolemaic, with the addition of those recently discovered and named in the southern hemisphere. The figures of the several constellations are well drawn, having their names in Latin or in Arabic, and are artistically colored in most of the copies of the globe known.

Greuter’s globes all appear to have been made in the same size, and they have the same general construction, with the exceptions noted below.

A pair of these globes, that is, of the terrestrial, of the year 1632 and the celestial of 1636, may be found in the following public and private libraries and museums in addition to those above mentioned: Scuole Comunale of Ancona; in the Biblioteca Comunale of Bologna; in the Biblioteca Comunale of Camarino; in the Seminario Vescovile of Carpi; in the Biblioteca Comunale and also in the Museo Agabiti of Fabriano; in the Biblioteca Comunale of Ferrara; in the Biblioteca di Santa Maria Nuova of Florence; in the Biblioteca Comunale of Gubbio; in the Biblioteca Governativo of Lucca; in the Biblioteca Capitolari of Reggio; in the Museo Astronomico, also in the Biblioteca Chigi and the Biblioteca Vittorio Emanuele of Rome; in the Biblioteca Comunale of Sanseverino; in the Biblioteca Gonzaga of Mantua; in the Biblioteca Universitario of Messina; in the Biblioteca Nazionale of Milan; in the Museo Civico of Modena; in the Museo di Fisica and also in the Seminario Vescovile of Padua; in the Biblioteca Palatina of Parma and a pair in the possession of Joseph Baer & Company ofFrankfurt, 1914. A copy of the terrestrial globe of the year 1632, in addition to the one described above as belonging to The Hispanic Society of America, may be found in the Biblioteca Comunale of Bassano; in the Ateneo of Brescia; in the Museo di Fisica of Catania; in the Archivo di Stato of Venice. In private libraries copies of these globes may be found in the possession of the General Antonio Gandolfi of Bologna; of Sr. P. Marezio Bazolle, once belonging to the Counts of Piloni of Belluno; of Professor Luigi Bailo of Treviso; of Sr. D. Luigi Belli of Genga. A copy of the celestial globe of the year 1636 may be found in the Biblioteca Comunale of Serra S. Quirico, and also a copy in the library of Mr. W. B. Thompson of Yonkers, N. Y.

It does not appear that Greuter himself issued other editions of his globes. His death occurred in the year 1638, and in this same year what may be called a second edition of his globes of the years 1632 and 1636, having the same dimensions, was offered to the public. It has been noted above that one Giuseppe de Rossi of Milan reprinted in Rome, in the year 1615, the Hondius terrestrial and celestial globes of 1601, making but slight alterations in the same but giving the impression that he was the original author. It was perhaps a near relative of this Milanese engraver and printer, Giovanni Battista de Rossi, who in the year 1638 reprinted in Rome the Greuter globes with but few changes, none of which can be considered of special import save the introduction of his own name as printer instead of that of Greuter. It may, however, be noted that both globes are dated 1636, that below the Tropic of Capricorn on the terrestrial globe is the legend “Si stampa da Gio Bat̄ta de Rossi Milanese in Piazza Navona. Roma,” and that the title legend of the celestial reads “In hac coelesti sphaera stellae fixae majori quam hactenus numero et accuratiori industria delineantur novis Asterismis in Philomaticom̄ gratiam de integro additis: quae omnia secundum Astronomorum Principis Tychonis Brahe et aliorum observationem verae suae longitudiniac latitudini ad annum Christi 1636 restituta sunt. Romae Matteus Greuter exc. 1636.” “In this celestial globe are shown the fixed stars in greater number than previously, and with greater care and industry, the new constellations being added for the sake of the student. All these, according to the observations of the Prince of Astronomers, Tycho Brahe, and likewise the observations of others, have been assigned to their proper latitude and longitude for the year of Christ 1636. Made at Rome by Mattheus Greuter 1636.”

A pair of these globes of the second edition may be found in the private library of Cav. Giampieri-Carletti of Piticchio in the Marche; in a private library of Ancona (owner unknown); in the Seminario Vescovile of Toscanella. A copy of the terrestrial globe may be found in the Seminario Vescovile of Macerata; and of the celestial in the library of Count Francesco Conestabile of Perugia.

The Hispanic Society of America has in its collection a unique globe which is clearly the work of Mattheus Greuter (Fig.103), although issued by Giovanni Battista de Rossi, as is attested by the legend, “Si Stampa da Gio Batta de Rossi Milanese in Piazza Navona Roma.” This legend, appearing in a neat cartouch, occupies the same position in the southern hemisphere, near the prime meridian, as that in which one finds the dedication of his first issue, but that part of the cartouch in the earlier issue showing the coat of arms of the Boncompagni family is here left blank. The title of the first issue is repeated save in the concluding words. Here we read “In iste quam exhibimus ... Mattheus Greuter auctor. Excudit Romae 1638.” Other legends, such as those in the northern part of North America beginning, “Post apertum a Lusitanis ...,” that southeast of Africa beginning, “Quam longitudinis initium ...,” and the briefer ones referring to the discovery of the Cape of Good Hope, to the expedition of Schouten, and to that of Magellan, are identical in the two editions. It, however, is to be noted that many of the briefer legends appearing in thefirst edition are wanting in this of the year 1638, and that in the latter the place names are greatly reduced in number. It is further particularly worthy of note that the North American continent in this later issue is very much altered in its outline. California appears as an island, “Insula California,” and is separated from the great northwestern section of North America, which is likewise represented, though somewhat doubtfully, as an island, by the “Stretto di Anian,” while the “Estreito de Jeso” separates the New World from Asia. The globe ball has a diameter of 26 cm. Its mounting is of wood. It has a broad horizon circle, on which are the representations of the signs of the zodiac, the calendar, the Roman and the Italian names of the winds or directions appearing in concentric circles, the whole being supported on a base consisting of four exquisitely carved and rather heavy support columns which are joined below by carved cross bracings. Its meridian circle is a comparatively recent and very clumsy substitute of wood for the original which doubtless was of brass. It is very seldom that one finds a globe of a date so early as is this which is so well preserved. The engraved map has the freshness of a new and unused print, excepting a very slight yellow tinge which is the contribution of age. On this globe map may be found one of the earliest attempts to give boundary lines to territorial divisions in the New World such as “Virginia,” “La Florida,” “Nuovo Mexico,” “N. Amsterdam,” “N. Suetia.”

Terrestrial Globe of Mattheus Greuter, 1638.

Fig. 103. Terrestrial Globe of Mattheus Greuter, 1638.

Terrestrial Globe of Dominico Rossi (Mattheus Greuter), 1695.

Fig. 103a. Terrestrial Globe of Dominico Rossi (Mattheus Greuter), 1695.

Celestial Globe of Dominico Rossi (Mattheus Greuter), 1695.

Fig. 103b. Celestial Globe of Dominico Rossi (Mattheus Greuter), 1695.

Attention has previously been called to the reproduction in Italy of the Hondius globes by Giuseppe de Rossi in the year 1615. It appears that to the Rossi family belonged a number of map engravers and art printers during the seventeenth century and particularly to that branch making its home in the city of Rome. As globe makers we however find them playing the rôle of copyists rather than that of independent producers.

In The Hispanic Society’s collection of old globes may be found a pair in an excellent state of preservation signed“Dominici de Rubeis (Rossi),” and dated “1695.” Each globe ball is composed of papier-mâché, having a diameter of 49 cm. and each is covered with a map printed on twelve gores, with a small circular disc for the polar space (Figs.103a,103b). In the List of Globe Makers other examples are noted.

In the South Pacific, on the terrestrial globe, one finds the inscription “Romae ex Chalcographia Dominici de Rubeis, heredis 70. Jacobi, ad templum S. Mariae de Pace, Anno 1695.” Dominico, whose name here appears, achieved considerable distinction as the publisher, with his relative Giovanni Giacomo de Rossi, of an atlas of one hundred and fifty-two maps, one of the finest examples of Italian cartography of the period. In a cartouch in the South Atlantic, on this globe, we find the name Mattheus Greuter given as the engraver, whose work has been referred to above, clearly suggesting that Rossi had merely reissued a globe of earlier date, since Greuter had died in the year 1638. A careful examination of the globe map confirms the suggestion, since no record is made of geographical discoveries after the year 1630. In the region of the North Pole the discoveries of the English and of the Dutch are recorded to the year 1628, and it may further be noted that in this same northern region the islands of “Frislanda” and “Brasil” are laid down, while in Greenland is a reference to the location of the fabled Monastery of St. Thomas.

References are made in legends to the discoveries of Magellan, Lemaire, Schouten, Frobisher, Davis, Hudson, and Drake. The region about New York is called “Nieu Nederland.” One can recognize the representation of the St. Lawrence, and the Mississippi. In the western region of the New World there appears to be considerable confusion as to the geography of the country, apparently the result of reading, without understanding, the records of the Spanish and of the English. One finds, for example, California representedas an island, and a double representation of the Strait of Anian.

The Spanish, French, English, Dutch, and Latin languages have been employed in names and legends.

The mounting of the globe is artistic and substantial, consisting of the usual horizon circle, octagonal on its outer edge, but circular on the inner edge to receive the globe ball, and having pasted on its upper surface the usual engraved paper strips and all that there is engraved thereon in the best examples of globe making. The meridian circle of wood, within which the sphere is made to revolve, is graduated. The supporting base consists of four exquisitely turned columns, braced at bottom with correspondingly well-turned crossbars.

The celestial globe has a mounting altogether like that of the terrestrial, and in the character of the map engraving there is agreement. The figures of the several constellations are copies of these drawn by Tycho Brahe, and all have been exquisitely colored. Stars from the first to the sixth magnitude are represented, while special attention is called to the new star in Cassiopeia first appearing in the year 1572, and to the comets of the years 1597 and 1616. Near Ursa Major is the author and date legend reading “In hoc Caelesto Globo notantur omnes stellae fixae, ad annum 1636 accommodatae, quae iuxta observationes Tychonis Brahae maximo illo Jansonii anno 1622 edito positae sunt, additis stellis quae a nauclero Petro Theod. circa Polum Australem notatae sunt ... Romae ex chalcographia Dominici de Rubeis, her. Jo. Jac. de Rubeis anno 1695.”

The twelve gores of the map have been mounted so as to join at the north and south poles of the ecliptic, there however being a small covering disc at each pole, so frequently employed since Mercator’s day, the globe itself being made to revolve on its equatorial axes.

To the makers of armillary spheres in the first half of the seventeenth century there may be added the name of AdamHeroldt, a native of Germany. We know little, however, of the extent of his activities. One example of his work is known, which bears the simple inscription engraved near the south polar circle “Adam Heroldt fecit Romae anno dn̄i MDCIL.” “Made by Adam Heroldt in the year 1649.” This sphere once belonged to the astronomer De Gasparis of Naples, but passed some years since into the collection of the Museo Astronomico of Rome. It is constructed entirely of brass, the diameter of the largest circle being about 14 cm. Its several circles, including the polar, the equatorial, the zodiacal, and the horizon, are graduated, the last-named having engraved on its surface the names of the months and of the winds, and resting on two semicircles, which in turn are supported by an artistically designed foot. The entire height of the sphere is about 20 cm. At the north pole is an hour circle bearing the inscription “Index Hor: Italic.” Within and at the common center of the several circles is a small ball representing the terrestrial sphere, which has a diameter of but 1 cm., and within the circle of the ecliptic and coördinated with it is a ring carrying the sun, while within this is one for the moon. The piece may be referred to as a fine example of the armillary sphere of the period.

Manfredo Settàla (1600-1680)59, a nobleman of Italy, was in his day a distinguished promoter of science and art, and an intelligent collector of rare objects, which he brought together in a museum of his own founding. This he described in a work bearing title ‘Museum Septalianum,’ which was published in Italian in the year 1666 by Scarabelli. This museum later passed into the possession of the Ambrosiana of Milan, where it has been considered one of the choicest additions.

Settàla had included globes in his collection, among which there has previously been mentioned that made by the Cremonese Gianelli, in the year 1549. But not only was he a collector; he likewise became interested in the actual work of globe construction. Among the objects coming tothe Ambrosiana from his museum is an armillary sphere bearing the inscription, “Manfredus Settalius fecit MDCXLVI.”60It is described as a sphere having a base of brass, its several circles including those representing the zodiac, the equator, the meridians, and the horizon, all being movable on a common axis, on which axis at the common center of the circles is a small ball 4 cm. in diameter, representing the earth. To this sphere rather extravagant praise is given in the descriptive catalogue referred to above.

There is a third armillary sphere belonging to the Settàla collection, which is of silver and which probably was constructed near the middle of the seventeenth century, although it is neither signed nor dated. It is 40 cm. in height, having a circle representing the ecliptic 15 cm. in diameter, which is graduated, having on its upper surface engraved figures representing the twelve zodiacal constellations. The meridian circle has a diameter of 16 cm., the horizon a diameter of 16 cm. and a breadth of 3 cm., on the upper surface of which have been engraved the names of the months, and the signs of the zodiac. In addition to the parts mentioned it has two small polar circles, and at the common center a small silver ball 1 cm. in diameter representing the earth.

Attention has been previously called to the transfer of the business of Jodocus Hondius into the hands of the son-in-law, Johan Janssonius, and of Abraham Goos, by whom it was carried on after the year 1640. This firm continued to issue the Hondius globes, modifying them from issue to issue with the addition of some of the latest geographical information obtainable. In the year 1648, with Johan Janssonius as editor and Abraham Goos as author and engraver, there was issued a pair of these revised Hondius globes, each having a diameter of 87 cm. On the terrestrial globe we read “Amstelodami Edebat Joannes Jansonius Sculpebat magnoque studio componebat Abrahamus Goos Amstelodamensis.” “Amsterdam. Edited by Johan Jansonius. Composedwith much study and engraved by Abraham Goos a native of Amsterdam.” Further details concerning this globe have not been obtainable, but it is very certain, although differing in size, it contains practically all the features common to the earlier editions of the Hondius terrestrial globes, and especially of the later ones.

The celestial globes have the following inscription: “Sphaera nova summo studio summaque diligentia atque industria Clarissimi viri D. Adriani Metii Watheseos apud Frunequeranos Professoris Ordinarii ad abacos Nobilissimi viri Thiconis Brahe configurata observationibus quamplurimis tum circa polum arcticum a discipulo suo Houtmanno adhibitis aucta et in annum 1620 reducta. Edente Joanne Jansonio 1648.” “A new globe constructed with the greatest industry, zeal and diligence accommodated to the tables of the most noble Tycho Brahe, enlarged by very many observations, those around the Arctic pole being made by myself, and those around the Antarctic by his disciple Houtmann. All, accommodated to the year 1630. Constructed by Johan Jansonius, 1648.” A pair of these globes may be found in the library of the Marquis Borromeo of Milan.

1Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. XXVII, p. 242; Aa, A. J. v. d. Biographische Woordenboek der Nederlanden. Haarlem, 1853. “Hondius, Jodocus,” to which notice there is appended a list of short bibliographical references; Kramm, C. De Leven en Werken der Hollandsche en Vlaamsche Kunstenaars. Amsterdam, 1857-1861. “Hondius, Jodocus.”

2See for an interesting example of his early work his world map printed at The Hague in the year 1595. This map, in two hemispheres, lays down the track of Drake’s circumnavigation, 1577-1580, and that of Cavendish, 1586-1588. An original of this may be found in the Grenville Library of the British Museum, a reproduction in the work referred to below, n.42.

3Aa, op. cit., “Bertius, Petrus de,” “Montanus, Petrus.” See also Kramm, op. cit.

4For a list of the Hondius Atlases of various dates see Phillips, P. L. A list of Geographical Atlases. Washington, 1909-1914. 3 vols.68

5Stevenson, E. L., and Fischer, J. Map of the World by Jodocus Hondius, with the title, ‘Novissima ac exactissima totius orbis terrarum descriptio magna cura & industria ex optimis quibusque tabulis Geographicis et Hydrographicis nuperrimisque doctorum virorum observationibus duobus planisphaerijs delineata. Auct. I. Hondio.’ New York, 1907. Facsimile in eighteen large sheets with key map and text.

6There is much doubt as to the correct reading of the date.

7These globes were acquired by Mr. Huntington at the auction sale held in the rooms of the American Art Association, November 24, 1916. They were listed in the catalogue of “Art treasures and Antiquities from the famous Davanzati Palace, and the Villa Pia, Florence, Italy,” under No. 575 as “a pair of sixteenth century Italian globes.” No other printed reference than that contained in this catalogue has hitherto appeared. It is hardly probable that a finer pair of these early Holland globes can be found in any of the museums or private libraries of Europe.

8Fiorini. Sfere terrestre e celesti. p. 265.

9Wagner, H. Lehrbuch der Geographie. Leipzig, 1903. pp. 78-81; Frisius, G. De principiis astronomiae et cosmographiae. Antwerp, 1530. Chap. titled “De novo modo inveniendi longitudinem”; Ptolemaeus. Geographia. Chap. 4. Ptolemy here refers to an eclipse of the moon, in the year 331 B.C., which was observed in Arbela the fifth hour, in Carthage the second hour. He therefore noted a difference in time of three hours between the two places, and he therefore concluded the difference in longitude to be 43 degrees. Since the actual difference in longitude is but 34 degrees his error was of considerable magnitude, which found expression in his maps, and in the maps of those who followed him, as the greatest of geographical teachers, well into the seventeenth century. The method of determining longitude by means of the observation of the eclipses of the moon remained practically the only method until the end of the fifteenth century. Attention may here be called to work of Cassini and of other astronomers of his period. See II, 141.

10Aa, op. cit., “Veen, Adrien,” also Kramm, op. cit.

11Baudet, P. J. H. Leven en werken van Willem Jansz. Blaeu. Utrecht, 1871. pp. 156-158; “Extract uit de Resol. der Staten van Holland en West-Vriesland, 5 Aug. 1608.”

12Fiorini, op. cit., p. 271.

13Information kindly furnished by the director.

14See II,11.

15The parrot particularly interested the early explorers who visited the South American coast. See the artistic representation appearing on the Cantino map, in apparently the oldest extant representation of an American landscape.

16Voyages of Fox and James to the Northwest. Ed. by Christy Miller for the Hakluyt Society. London, 1894. See especially the second part of Vol. II, “The strange and dangerous voyage of Captain Thomas James, London, 1633.”

17The voyage of Thomas Button was made in the years 1612-1613, an account of which is given in Voyages of Fox and James, Vol. I. pp. 162-201.

18Bauer, L. A. Principal Facts Relating to the Earth’s Magnetism. (In: United States Magnetic Declination Tables and Isogonic Charts for 1902. Washington, 1902.) Printed also as a separate; Wolkenhauer, A. Beiträge zur Geschichte der Kartographie und Nautik des 15 bis 17 Jahrhundert.69München, 1904; Hellmann, G. Ueber die Kentniss der magnetischen Deklination vor Christopher Columbus. (In: Meteorologische Zeitschrift. Braunschweig, 1906.) Gilbert, W. De Magnete. London, 1600, and reissued in translation in 1893. This work is one of great significance in its treatment of magnetism and electricity. See especially Bk. IV on Variation, Pedro Medina in his Art de Navigar, Valladolid, 1545, contended that the magnetic needle always points to the true north; Stevenson, E. L. Early Spanish Cartography of the New World. (In: Proceedings of the American Antiquarian Society. Worcester, 1909.) Attention is called in this paper to certain errors in early Spanish maps, probably due to a failure to note properly the declination of the magnetic needle.

19Baudet, op. cit.; same author. Nachscrift, 1872; same author. Notice sur la part prise par Willem Jansz. Blaeu dans la détermination des longitudes terrestres. Utrecht, 1875. Stevenson, E. L. Willem Janszoon Blaeu (1571-1638), a sketch of his life and work with an especial reference to his large world map of 1605 with facsimile. New York, 1914; Aa, op. cit., Vol. II. pp. 578-580; Dozy, C. M. Willem Janszoon Blaeu. (In: Tijdschrift van het Nederlandsch Aardrijkskundig Genootschap. Amsterdam, 1887. pp. 206-215.); Tiele, P. A. Leven en werken van Willem Jansz. Blaeu door P. J. Baudet. (In: De Gids. Amsterdam, 1872. Dorde Serie, Vol. I, pp. 356-367.); Tiele, P. A. Nederlandsche Bibliographie van Land- en Volkerkunde. Amsterdam, 1884. See this work for a bibliography of the works of Blaeu.

20Baudet, op. cit., pp. 77-114.

21See reference to Tycho Brahe, I,183.

22See I,184.

23Pictures of these instruments may be found in Le grand Atlas.

24Kepler, J. Astronomia nova ... De Motibus Stellae Martis. Prague, 1609; Allgemeine deutsche Biographie, “Kepler, Johann”; Wolf, Geschichte der Astronomie, pp. 281-310.

25In his earliest maps and charts Blaeu clearly had as his main purpose that of being of service to navigators.

26Blaeu, J. Le grand Atlas ou Cosmographie Blaviane. Amsterdam, 1663-1671. 12 Vols. Practically the same work in the Latin, the Dutch, and the Spanish languages. A bibliographical list of Blaeu’s principal geographical publications is given in Stevenson, op. cit., pp. 65-67, in Phillips, op. cit., and in Tiele, op. cit.

27Stevenson, op. cit., p. 25.

28Génard, P. M. N. J. Les globes de Guillaume Blaeu. (In: Bulletin Société Géographie d’Anvers. Anvers, 1883. Vol. VIII, pp. 159-160.); Baudet, op. cit., pp. 35-52; Stevenson, op. cit., pp. 15, 43-50.

29The Mercator globe has a diameter of 41 cm. and the Van Langren a diameter of 32 cm.

30Fiorini, op. cit., p. 242.

31Baumgärtner, J. Zwei alte Globen von Blaeu. Erdkugel von 1599 und Himmel-Globis von 1603. (In: Das Ausland. Stuttgart, 1885. No. 15, pp. 299-300.)

32(In: Hakluyt Society Publications, Ser. II, Vol. XVIII, pp. 187, 189.)

33Kästner, A. G. Geschichte der Mathematik, Vol. III, p. 86.

34Catalogus librorum, tam impressorum, quam manuscriptorum, Bibliothecae publicae Universitatis Lugduno-Batavae. Lugduni apud Batavos, 1716. p. 500.

35Van der Noort sailed in the year 1598.70

36See reference in note 32 above.

37Compare the austral land on this globe with that on Mercator’s globe of 1541, on the Hondius globe of 1600, on the Spano globe of 1593, et al.

38Photographs of these globes were reproduced in Stevenson, Willem Janszoon Blaeu. p. 44.

39See II,13.

40There was much discussion throughout these years as to the proper location of the prime meridian.

41Asher, G. M. Henry Hudson the Navigator. (In: Hakluyt Society Publications. London, 1860. Ser. I, Vol. 27.)

42Drake, Sir F. The World Encompassed, with introduction by Vaux, W. S. W. (In: Hakluyt Society Publications. London, 1854. First Series, 16.)

43Stevenson and Fischer. World Map of Jodocus Hondius. The evolution of a knowledge of the Great Lakes region and its cartographical representation should prove to be a topic of absorbing interest.

44Brown, A. The Genesis of the United States. Boston and New York, 1891. Vol. I, p. 229.Historians of this period in American history, with scarcely an exception, have taken it for granted that the expression “from sea to sea” means from the Atlantic to the Pacific, apparently not stopping to inquire as to the geographical notions entertained at the time of the granting of the Charter concerning the regions in question. The interpretation here offered takes into consideration the fact that Jodocus Hondius, perhaps the most distinguished geographer and map maker of his day, was much in favor in England at the time of the formation of the London Company and was much consulted concerning the geography of the New World. What he thought of the Virginia region to the “west and northwest” he has laid down in his large world map. It seems all but proven that the statement “from sea to sea west and northwest” means from the Atlantic to the great but indefinite inland sea “Mare Septentrionale Americae.”To interpret this expression as meaning from the Atlantic to the Pacific shows the historian, as Freeman has stated it, “in bondage to the modern map.” Here is a striking illustration of the importance attaching to the study of historical geography, and to its subordinate branch, historical cartography. Blaeu, Plancius, Greuter, and others, if not so clear and emphatic in their presentation of this region, evidently entertained practically the same geographical notion as Hondius.

44Brown, A. The Genesis of the United States. Boston and New York, 1891. Vol. I, p. 229.

Historians of this period in American history, with scarcely an exception, have taken it for granted that the expression “from sea to sea” means from the Atlantic to the Pacific, apparently not stopping to inquire as to the geographical notions entertained at the time of the granting of the Charter concerning the regions in question. The interpretation here offered takes into consideration the fact that Jodocus Hondius, perhaps the most distinguished geographer and map maker of his day, was much in favor in England at the time of the formation of the London Company and was much consulted concerning the geography of the New World. What he thought of the Virginia region to the “west and northwest” he has laid down in his large world map. It seems all but proven that the statement “from sea to sea west and northwest” means from the Atlantic to the great but indefinite inland sea “Mare Septentrionale Americae.”

To interpret this expression as meaning from the Atlantic to the Pacific shows the historian, as Freeman has stated it, “in bondage to the modern map.” Here is a striking illustration of the importance attaching to the study of historical geography, and to its subordinate branch, historical cartography. Blaeu, Plancius, Greuter, and others, if not so clear and emphatic in their presentation of this region, evidently entertained practically the same geographical notion as Hondius.

45Fiorini, op. cit., p. 257.

46Letter to the author signed and dated, D. Fana, 28/1/1914.

47Founded in the year 1602.

48Jameson, J. F. Willem Usselinx, Founder of the Dutch and Swedish West India Companies. New York, 1887.

49Wieder, F. C. De Wereldkaart van Petrus Plancius in het Colegio del Corpus Cristi te Valencia. (In: Tijdschrift van het Nederlandsch Aardrijkskundig Genootschap. Leiden, 1915. pp. 301-318.)

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