This lot includes four regional maps of western and southern Germany that appeared in the English edition of Mercator's Atlas Minor, which was published under the title Historia Mundi or Mercators Atlas by Michael Spark and Samuel Cartwright. After acquiring the plates to the 1607 edition of the Mercator/Hondius Atlas Minor, Sparke republished the maps with text translated into English by Wye Saltonstall. Sparke also had 41 additional maps engraved for the Historia Mundi. Most of these maps were copied from Cloppenburg's edition of Atlas Minor and are therefore a bit larger, and some were signed by the engravers Jacob van Langren and Ralph Hall. These additional maps only appeared in the 1635, 1637 and 1639 editions of the Historia Mundi and are therefore quite scarce. This lot includes two of the original maps of western Germany (Franckenland and Cleve et Murs) that appeared in the earlier editions of the Mercator/Hondius Atlas Minor as well as two of the newly engraved maps (Nassovia Comitatus and Coloniensis Archicpiscopatus) commissioned by Sparke. English text on verso. Sizes vary slightly. This lot includes:

A. Coloniensis Archicpiscopatus. Oriented with north to the right, this map follows the Rhine River from Wesel to Koblenz. Condition: Trimmed to the neatline at right by the bookbinder. (B+)
B. Nassovia Comitatus. This map shows a portion of the Rhineland-Palitinate and Hesse states of Germany, bounded by Koblenz in the west, Siegen in the north, Giessen in the east, and Wiesbaden in the south. The imprint of Jodocus Hondius appears at bottom right. Condition: Narrow right margin, as issued. (A)
C. Franckenland. Shows the region between Marburg and and Frankfurt in the west and Regensburg in the east. Condition: (A)
D. Cleve et Murs. This map follows the Meuse River from its confluence with the Waal River to Maastricht in the Netherlands and the Rhine River from Wesel to Cologne. Condition: (A)

References: Van der Krogt (Vol. III) #2390:351 (Sparke), 2410:351 (Sparke), 2550:351, & 2370:351.

Condition:

Crisp impression with light toning along the edges of the sheet and a few small chips and tears also along the edges. See description for additional details.