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Map Atlas with Portolan Charts of the Old World and New World, 1580. Portulano

About this Item

Title

  • Atlas with Portolan Charts of the Old World and New World, 1580.

Other Title

  • Portulano

Summary

  • This atlas of portolan charts of the old and the new worlds consists of 16 double leaves made from fine white parchment, bound in costly red morocco leather (made from fine goatskin) with gold ornaments in oriental style. The important Portuguese mariner, cartographer, and painter Fernão Vaz Dourado is thought to have made the atlas in 1580, near the end of his life. It belongs to a class of late-16th-century cartographic masterpieces, which reflect the period's rising demand for cartographic works that were both visually impressive and useful for practical navigation. The atlas was commissioned by the Portuguese crown and produced in Goa, western India, where Dourado spent his last years. The geographical scope of the atlas extends from South America to the Persian Empire, to China (where Canton is named), to Java and New Guinea, and to North America. The charts are remarkable for their narrative wealth. In the regions displayed, natives are portrayed wearing no clothes, with attributes thought to be typical, while busy hunting, gathering food, or carrying out other activities representative of their respective countries as portrayed in Western literary works. The conquerors, in contrast, appear on horseback, wearing hats and suits. The map of Africa contains what most likely is a pictorial allusion to the battle between the Portuguese and Moors near Ksar el-Kebir (Alcazarquivir, Morocco) in 1578. The two riders clad in characteristic costumes and carrying banners may represent the main protagonists in the battle, King Sebastião I of Portugal and Sultan Abd Al-Malik of Morocco (shown wearing a turban). The atlas was transferred from Polling Abbey (Upper Bavaria), when it was dissolved in 1803, to the Munich Court Library, which became the Bavarian State Library, where it has remained ever since.

Names

  • Dourado, Fernando Vaz, 16th century Cartographer.

Created / Published

  • Goa, India : [publisher not identified], 1580.

Headings

  • -  1580
  • -  Portolan charts

Notes

  • -  Title devised, in English, by Library staff.
  • -  "BSB Shelfmark: Cod.icon. 137"--Note extracted from World Digital Library.
  • -  Original resource extent: 38 sheets, parchment : illustrations ; 47 x 33.5 centimeters.
  • -  Original resource at: Bavarian State Library.
  • -  Content in Portuguese.
  • -  Description based on data extracted from World Digital Library, which may be extracted from partner institutions.

Medium

  • 1 online resource.

Digital Id

Library of Congress Control Number

  • 2021668459

Online Format

  • compressed data
  • pdf
  • image

Additional Metadata Formats

IIIF Presentation Manifest

Rights & Access

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Credit Line: [Original Source citation], World Digital Library

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Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Dourado, Fernando Vaz, 16Th Century Cartographer. Atlas with Portolan Charts of the Old World and New World. [Goa, India: publisher not identified, 1580] Map. https://www.loc.gov/item/2021668459/.

APA citation style:

Dourado, F. V. (1580) Atlas with Portolan Charts of the Old World and New World. [Goa, India: publisher not identified] [Map] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/2021668459/.

MLA citation style:

Dourado, Fernando Vaz, 16Th Century Cartographer. Atlas with Portolan Charts of the Old World and New World. [Goa, India: publisher not identified, 1580] Map. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/2021668459/>.