A copper plate engraving with hand colored wash. Size: 15 inches X 19 inches Map Type: Atlas This is a superior copy, with vivid colors. Beautifully framed in a black and gold wooden 2" frame. Outside dimensions are 25 inches X 28 inches. This finely engraved map of the provinces Groningen and Friesland in the Netherlands was originally created by Gerard Mercator. This is a strong engraving.
Jodocus Hondius was a Flemish artist, engraver, and cartographer. He is best known for his early maps of the New World and Europe, for re-establishing the reputation of the cartography work of Gerard Mercator. He helped established Amsterdam as the center of cartography in Europe in the 17th century.
In 1604 he purchased the plates of Gerard Mercator's Atlas from Mercator's grandson. Hondius republished Mercator's work with 36 additional maps, including several which he himself had produced. Despite the addition of his own contributions, Hondius gave Mercator full credit as the author of the work, listing himself as the publisher.
After Hondius' death in 1611, his publishing work in Amsterdam was continued by his widow and two sons, Jodocus II and Henricus. Later his family formed a partnership with Jan Jansson, whose name appears on the Atlas as co-publisher after 1633. Eventually 50 editions of the Atlas were released in many different European languages. The series is sometimes called the "Mercator/Hondius/Jansson" series because of Jansson's later contributions.
References: Tooley's Dictionary of Mapmakers, Volume 2 Page 364, Hondius Jodocus, Scott, Valerie, Map Collector Publications, Tring, Hertz, England, 1999