Cartographica Neerlandica Background for Ortelius Map No. 164

Title: CHINAE, | "olim Sinarum regionis, nova descriptio. | auctore Ludovico Georgio". [A new representation of China, once called the region of the Chinese, by Ludovicus Georgius.] (Cartouche top left:) "Cum priuilegio Imperatoris, | Regis, & Brabantię: ad de:|cennium .1584". [With an imperial, royal and Brabant privilege for ten years .1584.] (Upper centre:) "Lacus hic rotundus in Sancij prouincia, factus fuit | inundatione Ao. 1557. in quo submersę sunt ciuitates | septem; pręter opidula et pagos: et mortalium ingź:|tem numerū. vno tantum puero in trunco | arboris seruato". [This round lake in the province of Sanci came about as a result of a flood in the year 1557, during which seven entire communities were inundated, next to small cities and villages, and a gigantic number of dead people were the result, except for one boy only, who was saved by climbing onto the trunk of a tree.] (Text between mountain range and great wall:) "Murus quadringentarum leucarum inter montium crepidines a Rege Chinę contra | Tartarorum ab hac parte eruptiones extructus". [A wall of four hundred miles has been constructed between the edges of the mountains by the king of China against the invasions of the Tartars in this part].

Plate size: 372 x 482 mm
Scale: 1 : 2,800,000
Identification number: Ort 164 (Koeman/Meurer: 97, Karrow: 1/152, vdKrogtAN: 8410:31)

Occurrence in Theatrum editions and page number:

1584L3Addblank (100 copies printed) (identical with 1584L, but here without page number; last line, left aligned, in cursive script like the entire text: "vocari ą Ptolemeo,situs demonstrat, neque vox abludit. China enim cłm scribant Hispani, Lusitanique, Sina tamen pronunciant".),
1584G3Add25 in upper right corner (75 copies printed) (last line, left aligned, in small Gothic font like the entire text: Konig zerschen. Item daß man den Bisern von dannen an manche theyl der weldt hierauß bringe.),
1584L93 (750 copies printed) (identical with 1584L3Add, but here with page number; last line, left aligned, in cursive script like the entire text: "vocari ą Ptolemeo,situs demonstrat,neque vox abludit. China enim cłm scribant Hispani, Lusitanique, Sina tamen pronunciant".),
1585F3Add19 (75 copies printed) (last line, left aligned: Espaignols & les Portugalois escriuent China, ils prononcent toutefois Sina.),
1587F93 (250 copies printed) (last line, left aligned: Espaignols & les Portugalois escriuent China , ils prononcent toutefois Sina.),
1588S93 or no page number (300 copies printed) (last line first text page, right aligned: carater ; last line second text page, left aligned: corda el nombre,por que aun que los Espańoles y Portuguezes escriban China;con todo esse pronuncian Sina.),
1592L101 (525 copies printed) (last line, left aligned, in cursive script like the entire text: "moribus,exstat quoque volumen Ioannis Gonzalis. De eadem vide Ferdinandum Lopesium Castagnedam.Sed in primus sextum Maffeij de Reb. Indicis volumen."),
1595L106 (500 copies printed) (last line first text page, left aligned: uerso vt Hebręi, sed supernč rectą seorsum lineas ducunt.; second text page, left aligned: imprimis sextum Maffeij lib. de Reb. Indicis.),
1598F107 (525 copies printed) (last line, left aligned: Espagnols & les Portugalois escriuent China, ils prononcent toutefois Sina.),
1598/1610/1613D75 (100 copies printed) (last line first text page, in Gothic script like the entire text, full width: Alle d'Inwoonders dan van dit rijck/ ghelijck oock die van Cauchinchina ende der Eylanden Lequio gebruycken ; last line, centred like 5 lines above it: men dat noch Sina.),
1601L106 (200 copies printed) (penultimate line first text page, left aligned: sed supernč rectą deorsum lineas ducunt. ; last line second text page, left aligned: sextum Maffeij lib.de Reb.Indicis.item Bibliothecę Selectę Posseuini caput nonum libri noni partis primę.),
1602G109 (250 copies printed) (last line, left aligned, in Gothic script like the entire text: Item/daß man den Bisern von dannen an manche theil der welt hierauß bringe.),
1602S109 (250 copies printed) (last line first text page, right aligned: y otros; last line second text page, left aligned: Tambien en el nono capitulo d'el nono libro de la Biblioteca Selecte Posseuini en la prima parte.),
1603L109 (300 copies printed) (last line, first text page, right aligned: Habet ; one but last line, first text page, full width: sed supernč rectą deorsum lineas ducunt ; last line second text page, left aligned: sextum Masseij lib. de Reb.Indicis. item Bibliothecę Selectę Posseuini caput nonum libri noni partis primę.),
1606E106 (300 copies printed) (last line first text page, full width: For example ; a city or towne (the one he calleth "Leombi", the other "Fu") all do expresse this word by this marke [empty space]. In like | maner) ; last line second text page, left aligned: chapter of the ninth booke of the first part of the choice Library of "Posseu nis".),
1608/1612I118 (300 copies printed) (last line first text page, right aligned: sempio, ; last line second text page, right aligned: last line second text page, left aligned, in cursive script like 25 lines above it: "scelta libreria del Padre Posseuino pur della compagnia delli Iesuiti ambodue."),
1609/1612L119 (300 copies printed) (last line, left aligned in small font: item Bibliothecę Selectę Posseuini caput nonum libri noni partis primę.),
1609/1612/1641S119 (325 copies printed) (last line first text page, right aligned: fertil ; last line second text page, left aligned: Bibliotheca Selecte Posseuini en la prima parte.).

Approximate number of copies printed: 5425.

States: 164.1 as described.
164.2: some time between during 1587, the inscription "las Philippinas" appeared above "SINVS MAGNVS". There are copies with and without this addition in the 1587F edition.
164.3: from 1595 onwards, the rightmost wind waggon in the top centre receives cross hatching on its sail. The upper of the two wind waggons bottom right receives stippling on its sail. The lower of the two wind waggons bottom right receives cross hatching on its sail. The hatching along the coast lines is extended from 3 to 6 mm.

Cartographic sources: Luiz Jorge de Barbuda or Ludovicus Georgius who made a manuscript map of China which reached Ortelius in 1580 via Arias Montanus (Meurer p. 111-112), see Hessels letters nr. 62, 99, 210, 217.

References: T. Suarez (1999) "Early Mapping of South-East Asia", Periplus, p. 164-170, Figure 88.

Remarks: when this map appeared, it was by far the most accurate one of China. Japan is shown on a curious curved projection reminiscent of Poruguese charts of the period with Honshu dissected along the line of Lake Biwa. The Great Wall is shown but with 400 miles only; its length is grossly underestimated. The Tartar "yurts" are dotted across the plains and steppes of Central and East Asia.
The text on verso includes four transcriptions of Chinese characters, brought back to Europe by the Jesuit Bernadino Escalante, published in Sevilla in 1577.
Note the four wind waggons on the right and top of the map, perhaps the earliest examples of a depiction of this device, which in Europe is certain to have originated in the Low Countries, but which had been invented much earlier in China. The wind waggon is well documented in a treatise in Dutch on the subject by Simon Stevin which appeared in Dutch in the year 1600.

Text

Bibliographical sources

Topographical names