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Comorra - Braun & Hogenberg, 1596/97.



Antique map with two views of Komárno by Braun and Hogenberg: One from the northeast of the castle and city; one from the northwest of the citadel. Engraved by G. Hoefnagel after a design of his son.

Signed and dated in the centre: Procured by G. Hoefnagel. Drawn by his son in the year 1595.

COMMENTARY BY BRAUN (on verso): "Near Rába-Györ lies Komárno, a small town that was ravaged by the Turks on several occasions. In our own day, however, it is famous for a mighty fortress that Ferdinand I had built at one end of the Island of Schütt in the Danube, for the protection of the surrounding area. Due to the convergence of the two rivers from both sides, it was built like the tip of a sword, as if it were the stern of a large ship. A deep moat separates the town from the fortress, which can be reached via a wooden drawbridge. In this way the fortress resembles a triangle of a flat pyramid."

Komárno is presented in two views, seen from different angles. In the top engraving we look across the river towards the fortress of Komárno, which lies within the confluence of the Váh and the Danube. It was designed and constructed on the ruins of a medieval castle by Italian engineers in the 16th century, as a counterpart to Györ fortress. Visible on the right is the Komárno market, situated on the Island of Schütt. The fortress and its neighbouring settlement were famous within the Kingdom of Hungary as they were never conquered by the Ottoman Empire. In the bottom engraving the fortress is seen from a different angle, allowing the viewer to appreciate its strategic position between the Danube and Váh Rivers on the southeast tip of Schütt Island and to look down into the interior of the fortified complex. On the left is the Hungarian bank of the Danube, where the town of Komárno is located today; the town of Komárno on the right shore now forms part of Slovakia. The battle scenes on water and land refer to the military conflicts with the Ottomans.

Date of the first edition: 1596
Date of this map: 1596/97
Date on map: 159

Copper engraving
Size: 36 x 51cm (14 x 19.9 inches)
Verso text: Latin
Condition: Old coloured, some printer's ink smudging, else very good.
Condition Rating: B+
References: Van der Krocht 4, 2106; Taschen, Braun and Hogenberg, p.399.

From: Urbium Praecipuarum Mundi Theatrum Quintum Auctore Georgio Braunio Agrippinate. Part 5. Köln, 1596/97. (Van der Krogt 4, 41:1.5)

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Item number: 22107
Price: 550 Euro

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