BLAEU, Willem (1571-1638) and Johannes BLAEU (1596-1673) - photo 1
BLAEU, Willem (1571-1638) and Johannes BLAEU (1596-1673) - photo 2
BLAEU, Willem (1571-1638) and Johannes BLAEU (1596-1673) - photo 3
BLAEU, Willem (1571-1638) and Johannes BLAEU (1596-1673) - photo 4
BLAEU, Willem (1571-1638) and Johannes BLAEU (1596-1673) - photo 5
BLAEU, Willem (1571-1638) and Johannes BLAEU (1596-1673) - photo 6

BLAEU, Willem (1571-1638) and Johannes BLAEU (1596-1673)

Lot 80
10.12.2025 12:00UTC +00:00
Classic
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CHRISTIE'S
AuctioneerCHRISTIE'S
Event locationUnited Kingdom, London
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ID 1514346
Lot 80 | BLAEU, Willem (1571-1638) and Johannes BLAEU (1596-1673)
Estimate value
£ 25 000 – 35 000
BLAEU, Willem (1571-1638) and Johannes BLAEU (1596-1673)
Theatrum orbis terrarum, sive atlas novus. Amsterdam: Willem and Jan Blaeu, 1635.
Extremely rare complete copy of the first Latin edition of the Blaeus' Atlas novus: the first to appear at auction in 30 years. In 1621, the Blaeus’ neighbour and competitor, Johannes Janssonius, published a plagiarized copy of Willem Blaeu’s pilot guide Het Licht der Zeevart. ‘It is perhaps this act by his competitor that gave Blaeu the idea of competing with his opponent in the area where Janssonius and his brother-in-law Henricus Hondius had a monopoly, namely atlas production … After purchasing the copperplates of the atlas maps produced by Jodocus Hondius Jr., Blaeu brought out his first atlas in 1630. With this publication a new trend in Amsterdam atlas production began, characterized by competition and an increase in the number of maps’ (Van der Krogt II, p. 25).

On 11 February 1634, Willem Blaeu advertised his intention to publish a ‘groot Landtcaertboeck de “Atlas”’ in four languages: German, Dutch, French and Latin. Only the German edition appeared that year, with the other three, including the present lot, appearing in 1635. However, over the next two decades the project was successful enough to warrant expanding into a monumental six-volume Theatrum. The present two-volume Latin edition Atlas novus contains fourteen maps of American interest, with all – apart from the New World continents – appearing in the second volume.

All of the 1635 editions are now extremely rare on the market: only three other complete copies of this Latin edition seem to have appeared at auction since the Second World War: Sotheby’s 6 July 1959, lot 478 (£600), Sotheby’s 12 February 1968, lot 251 (£1600), and lastly, some 30 years ago, the Otto Schafer copy at Sotheby’s New York 1 November 1995, lot 37 ($54,825) (RBH/ABSA). Van der Krogt II, 2:101.1-2.

2 volumes, folio (502 x 340mm). Engraved allegorical title-pages with mounted letterpress overslips, 204 double-page engraved maps, of which 7 folding, and 3 maps within text, all coloured by a contemporary hand (map I.24 ‘Gallia Le Royaume De France’ [4000:2A.3] is pasted over a copy of map I.70 of ancient Gaul, ‘Typus Galliae Veteris’ [4000H:2B], which has been printed in error on the descriptive letterpress sheets that accompanies the former map, a few plates lightly creased or splitting along centrefold, this latter affecting maps II.85 ‘India quae Orientalis dicitur,’ 91 ‘Nova Virginae Tabula,’ and II.97 ‘Novus Brasiliae Typus’, a number of old paper repairs sometimes affecting a few letters or words of letterpress including leaf **2 in vol. I, variable browning throughout with map I.5 ‘Americae nova Tabulae’ very browned with a marginal repaired tear just into image, map II.24 ‘Rhenus Fluviorum Europae celeberrimus’ with 180mm tear and map II.26 ‘Clivia Ducatus Et Ravenstein Dominium with 210mm tear, maps II.62-63 with some marginal worming). Contemporary vellum, covers panelled in gilt, spine with raised bands in 8 compartments tooled with gilt foliate scrolls, edges gilt, green silk ties (tailcaps splitting to both volumes with that to vol. I almost detached, some soiling to covers, extremities rubbed, lacking silk ties to vol. II). Provenance: old ink library classmarks in lower margins of armorial titles.
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