Ortelius, Abraham | The first map of the Americas in a modern atlas

Ortelius, Abraham 

Americae Sive Novi Orbis, Nova Descriptio. [Antwerp: 1579, or later]

Copperplate engraved map (500 x 363 mm). Handcoloring, decorative cartouche, ships in sea area; margins trimmed, some toning, repair to upper margin, reinforcement and staining to center fold. Matted and framed; not examined out of frame.

The most frequently consulted map of the New World

Ortelius published the first modern atlas in 1570, and it went through numerous editions until 1612. It was arguably the most popular geographical works of the day, and Ortelius's breadth of sources is evident here. English and French sources were consulted for Canada and the Northeast, and Portuguese and Spanish sources for the Southwest, West Coast, and South America. 

REFERENCE

Burden 39 (second state); Schwartz & Ehrenberg, Plate 32