As early as the autumn of 1547, about thirty advance or dedication copies of this chronicle were printed and presented to representatives of the Thirteen Old Cantons. The print run intended for sale was probably around two thousand copies and was dated 1548. The success was enormous because the entire edition was sold within a few years despite the staggering sales price of thirteen guilders. A second edition, updated to around 1580, was published by Stumpff's son, Johann Rudolf (1530–1592), in 1586, and a third edition (Schweytzer Chronick) appeared another twenty years later in a smaller format.

An outstanding feature of this book is the maps, partially based on material supplied by Aegidius Tschudi. There are five double-page maps: Europe, Germany, France, the country of the ancient Hevetii tribe, and contemporary Switzerland, and eight full-page regional maps of the Confederation. These maps were also published separately and formed the first ever national atlas. Additionally, Johann Honter’s rendition of the Apianus cordiform world map of 1520 (see SC-TM-1520-Apianus-

WorldMap), appears in the text on page two of volume one. First published in Honter’s ‘Rudimenta Cosmographia’ (1546) the woodcut was engraved, and signed, by Heinrich Vogtherr the Elder, as “HVE” in the lower left.

, celebrated as ‘Livius Helveticus’ (the Swiss Livy) by his contemporaries, was a Swiss chronicler and theologian and one of the most important personalities of the Swiss Reformation. He entered the order of the Knights of Saint John in Freiburg im Breisgau in 1521 and a year later was appointed prior at Bubikon, Zürich. He there declared himself for the Reformation and, as a friend of Huldrych Zwingli, worked faithfully for the Reformers until his retirement in 1562.

In 1529 he married Regula Brennwals, an author who wrote a chronicle of Switzerland that stimulated Stumpff’s interest in historical studies. Inspired by his wife, Stumpff undertook extensive research and travel, ultimately culminating in the publication of the ‘Gemeiner Loblicher Eydgnoschafft Stetten’, the first published chronicle of Switzerland. Describing the places, lands, and peoples of the region, its success was immediate and helped to forge the emerging identity of the confederation. Published in Middle German, the work also witnesses a linguistic shift away from High German (Gemeines Deutsch) in the wake of Martin Luther's translation of the Bible.

With almost 4,000 woodcuts, Stumpff's chronicle is one of the most richly illustrated printed works ever, even surpassing the famous ‘Nuremberg 

, printed in 1493. This is one of only thirty dedication copies that were pre-circulated to representatives of the Thirteen Old Cantons in 1547 to promote the forthcoming publication of the chronicle in 1548. 

The splendid woodcuts, showing deeds, battles, town views, coats of arms, and other facets of Swiss history, also include one of the earliest accounts of the Legend of William Tell. The woodcuts are the work of the most renowned Swiss artists of the day, such as Heinrich Vogtherr the Elder, the Zurich painter Hans Asper, Robert and Johann Rudolf Wyssenbach, the monogramist VS, and the Zurich woodcutter Ludwig Fryg.

The chronicle also contains numerous maps created in collaboration with Aegidius Tschudi. There are five double-page maps (Europe, Germany, France, Hevetii, and contemporary Switzerland) and eight full-page regional maps of the confederation. In addition, Johannes Honter’s small version of 

Stumpff received active support for his magnum opus from leading humanists and historians, namely Aegidius Tschudi (1505–1572) from Glarus, the Saint Gallen Reformer Vadianus (1484–1551), the Zurich Antistes Heinrich Bullinger (1504–1575), and last but not least from the printer Christoph Froschauer (1490–1564), who spared neither effort nor expense to render this chronicle a masterpiece of Swiss book illustration in the sixteenth century and a standard work of history up to the eighteenth century.

Text leaf from German book with battle scene and weather

Title page

Cordiform world map

Map of Spain

Genealogy of the Turkish Emperors

Battle scene

Map of the German nation

Royalty of Germany portraits

Ship on the ocean

Military attack on a town

Settlement and army illustrations

Map of Gaul

Map of Switzerland 

Title page for part 2

Map of Europe

Attack on Zurich

Aargau, Switzerland

Chur and Graubünden

Coats of Arms from Unterwallis

Kaiser Friedrich visiting Basel

Illustration of two men in armour before their heraldry 

The first “national” atlas, and the first of Switzerland. One of the few copies that survive of the first edition of about thirty examples, printed for dedication purposes, or for presentation at the Frankfurt Fair, with the date 1547; the rest of the edition was then dated 1548.

Later blindstamped pigskin, spine in compartments with raised bands, red lettering piece in one. 

Two parts in one volume. Folio. Titlepage printed in red and black with Froschauer's device, 5 double-page woodcut maps (Europe, Germany, France and twice Switzerland), 8 full-page woodcut maps of the counties, 10 smaller maps after Johannes Honter, including his ‘Universalis Cosmographia’, and about 4,000 woodcuts in the text by Heinrich Vogtherr the Elder, Hans Asper, Rudolf and Johann Wyssenbach and others. 

Stumpff's World Chronicle