Our Story
Cartographica Neerlandica was founded by Dr. Marcel van den Broecke (1942–2020) and Dr. Deborah van den Broecke-Günzburger. Marcel devoted his life to the study of Abraham Ortelius and early cartography, publishing extensively on the subject. According to his wishes, Deborah is continuing the business, offering the collection for sale. Our speciality is maps by Abraham Ortelius (1527–1598), a founding father of modern cartography.
He made the first atlas ever in 1570. Its name was Theatrum Orbis Terrarum, or Theatre of the World. It was an instant success and sold over 40 editions. It was the most expensive, as well as the best selling book of the time. About 8,100 of these atlases were printed in Antwerp between 1570 and 1612.
As a true scientist, Ortelius assiduously worked at updating the cartographical knowledge displayed in his atlas. He achieved this by adding new maps and discarding old ones. As a good renaissance humanist, he took care to mention all his cartographical sources. His first atlas had 53 maps, his last one 166. Over the various editions, 228 different maps were used.
Our Approach
We at Cartographica Neerlandica do not issue catalogues. Catalogues are very expensive to make, soon outdated when items are sold, and never as informative on the item that you are specifically interested in as you would wish.
Our entire stock is on our website. All maps have a 200-word description. All maps also have photographs at medium resolution for quick browsing, and high-resolution images which show far more detail.
The collection is gradually being sold. Browse our current stock to find what is still available.