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Cracovia Minoris Poloniae Metropolis - Braun & Hogenberg, 1618.



Antique map - Bird's-eye view of Krakow by Braun and Hogenberg after G. Hoefnagel and E. vander Rye. Key to 14 locations.

CARTOUCHE TOP: Cracow, capital of Lesser Poland.

CARTOUCHE BOTTOM: Painted by Egidius van der Rye, procured by Georg Hoefnagel.

COMMENTARY BY BRAUN (on verso): "Cracow has a very big marketplace on which stands a splendid town hall. Here justice is administered and important official acts are performed. [...] But the castle is so big that it can be considered a town in its own right. It is surrounded by such splendid buildings and palaces that even the finest castles and houses in Italy could be more beautiful or more magnificent. [...] But because the dukes and kings understood that to preserve the Christian religion it is also necessary to cultivate equally the good liberal arts and sciences and to promote diligence to the greatest possible extent, Casimir III set up a university in his city of Cracow, which was named after him in 1361, with the approval of Pope Urban V, and appointed scholars from Paris and Prague."

This is a view of the city from the south over the River Vistula. On Wawel hill lies the royal castle (A) with the cathedral dedicated to SS Wenceslas and Stanislas (B). In the middle rises the church of Corpus Christi (D); to the right of this are the town hall (F), the church of the Holy Trinity (G) and the church of St Mary (H). First mentioned in 965, the town became part of the Piast state unde Mieszko I. In 1038 Duke Casimir I, the Restorer, made Cracow the capital of Poland, and the first university in the country was founded here in 1364 by King Casimir III of Poland, called the Great. The city's Golden Age was during the reign of the Jagiellon kings from 1506 to 1572, when many Renaissance buildings were erected, which still adorn the city. (Taschen)

Copper engraving
Size: 30.5 x 53cm (11.9 x 20.7 inches)
Verso: Blank
Condition: Small repairs at left and right margins, superb old colour.
Condition Rating: B
References: Van der Krogt 4, 2152; Taschen, Braun and Hogenberg, p.479.

From: Theatri praecipuarum Totius Mundi Urbium Liber Sextus Anno MDCXVIII. (Van der Krogt 4, 41:1.6)

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Item number: 23446
Price: 3000 Euro

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