Utrecht / Het Gooi – Nicolaas Visscher, 1677-1684
€475
“Ultraiectini Dominii Tabula”. Copper engraving published between 1677–1684 by Nicolaes Visscher II. With original hand colouring. Size approx. 46 × 54.5 cm.
This map centers on the city of Utrecht and depicts the area between Amsterdam, Amersfoort, and Schoonhoven. It shows the extensive network of canals and polders characteristic of the region.
The piece is richly decorated: in the upper left, a figurative cartouche displays the coat of arms of the Bishopric of Utrecht, held by two cherubs, alongside the goddess Diana with her catch, a river god with a jug pouring out abundant water, a cornucopia, and a shepherd with his livestock. The scale bars in the lower right are adorned with a merman, a mermaid, and putti holding a fishing net and measuring instruments.
A small compass rose in the lower right corner indicates that north is positioned at the lower right.
Father Nicolaas I Visscher (1618–1679) and son Nicolaas II (1649–1702) were publishers within the family firm established by Claes Jansz. Visscher. Their atlases were often assembled according to buyers’ wishes (the so-called Atlas Contractus). These typically contained no accompanying text, only occasionally a printed index. They incorporated maps by other makers as well as copperplates engraved and reworked from Claes Jansz. Visscher’s own stock.
Price: Euro 475,-
