Printed from the second copper plate of three, first published in 1570. 

’ world map, 'Plate One', appeared in all early editions of the ‘Theatrum’ from 1570 onwards. After 1575, the copperplate developed an increasingly serious crack and despite attempts to save the corner using reinforcing bolts, Ortelius was finally forced to produce a new plate in 1586, the so-called intermediate 'Plate Two'. When it was first used, this plate was dated '1586', however, as it was re-issued the date was erased, and examples of the map, as here, were printed without the date. Later still the coastline of South America was revised, removing the characteristic 'bulge'. In turn, the entire plate was replaced in 1587. Many of the different states of the world map coexisted as Ortelius and his printers seemed to use whichever maps were to hand. Because of its brief period of use, all examples of the world map printed from the second plate, as here, are very rare.

Authority on Ortelius maps Marcel van den Broecke (1996) provides further publishing history of this plate. However, even here this example is an anomaly. Van den Broecke states that ‘mostly’ the 1588 Spanish edition of the atlas contained the world map with a cloud border but a corrected coastline of South America (Plate Two, 

 Three). The current example bears Spanish text, the cloud border, but an uncorrected coastline of South America, a combination that van den Broecke only alludes to in his work.

This world map by Ortelius was the first to be included in an atlas of uniform maps. It is derived principally from Mercator’s wall map of 1569. Notable features include the depiction of the North Pole as four separate islands, the inclusion of Northeast and Northwest Passages as well as the distinctive ‘bulge' in the South American coastline. To the south is the vast ‘Terra Australis Nondum Cognita’ (‘Unknown Great Southern Land’), which was an assimilation of sightings and legends of landmasses made during Ferdinand Magellan’s circumnavigation f 1519-1522. The legend: ‘Hanc Continentem Australem, Nonnulli Magellanicam Regionem ab Eius Inuentore Nuncupant’ explains that this Southern continent is also known as ‘Magellanica’, after its 'discoverer'. 

Ortelius also assimilated information from the thirteenth century accounts of Marco Polo and more nebulous sources such as early Spanish and Portuguese reports of lands to the south which would have gone through multiple sources. Ortelius himself credits the geographical information of Asia and the Far East to ‘M.Pauli: Ven’ or Marco Polo of Venice, and ‘Lud. Vartomanni’, Ludovico di Varthema, the celebrated Italian adventurer and traveller. This credit can be seen on the lower right of the map which on the peninsula labelled ‘Beach’. However, Ortelius was wise enough to question his authorities too, questioning whether New Guinea is part of the Southern continent or an island.

The Sunderland Collection

One of the most recognisable and famous sixteenth-century maps, this oval world map was created by the hugely influential cartographer Abraham Ortelius who drew on a wide range of sources, including the wall map of Gerard Mercator and the writings of Venetian explorer Marco Polo.

Below the map is a quote from the legendary Roman statesman Cicero: 'To whom can anything great be seen in human affairs, to whom all eternity and the greatness of the whole world is known?'

This particular copy was issued in the first Spanish language edition of Ortelius’ atlas. It was published in 1588, which is the same year that the Spanish armada was launched by King Philip II against Protestant England. Spanish text can be found on the verso of this map, and the radiant colouring is original.

Along with Gemma Frisius and Gerard Mercator, Abraham Ortelius is generally considered one of the founders of the Netherlandish School of Cartography, and a prominent Spanish geographer during a time of European exploration and colonialism. The publication of Ortelius's atlas in 1570 is often considered the official beginning of Netherlandish cartography being at the forefront of the discipline.

This example of Ortelius’s world map was printed for publication in the first Spanish edition of his masterpiece atlas ‘Theatrum Orbis Terrarum’ by Christopher Plantin (1520–1589). It is no coincidence that it was issued in 1588, the year that Philip II of Spain furthered his ambitions for Spanish world domination by launching his Armada against England.

A very handsome example of Abraham Ortelius’s landmark map of the world on an oval projection in superb contemporary hand colouring. This is a rare Spanish language edition, printed from the second copperplate which is identified by the 'bulge' in the coastline of South America.

Rare Spanish Edition of Ortelius’s Oval World Map