Romania Imperii Ova Oriens Est Descriptio Geographica Authore Michaelè Antonio Baudrand Parisino Abbate de Roboribus...

Article description

Original copper engraving of the Eastern Roman Empire after the geographic text of Michel'Antoine Baudrand, published by the prominent Roman house of Giovanni Giacomo de Rossi, Rome, 1669. Image: 390 x 520 mm (15 x 20 inches). Uncolored as published. A substantial map from one of Rome's most important 17th-century print publishers. Giovanni Giacomo de Rossi (1627–1691) was the most important map and print publisher in 17th-century Rome, continuing the prestigious family firm founded by his father Giuseppe de Rossi. By 1648 he had established his own business, and in 1664 was granted a papal privilege by Pope Alexander VII — effectively a monopoly in the Roman print market. His principal cartographic partner was Giacomo Cantelli da Vignola, with whom he produced the renowned Atlas Mercurio Geografico. The Rossi firm also published prints by Giovanni Battista Piranesi and other leading baroque artists. The Rossi archive represents an essential cornerstone of Italian baroque cartography. The map depicts the Eastern Roman Empire as described in the geographical writings of Michel'Antoine Baudrand (1633–1700), a French Benedictine abbot and geographer whose Geographia Ordine Litterarum Disposita was a standard geographic reference of the period. The full Latin title — Romania Imperii Ova Oriens Est Descriptio Geographica — places this within Rossi's series of historical geographic plates, issued from 1669. The engraving is executed to the high standard characteristic of the Rossi atelier. A rare survival from one of Rome's most distinguished 17th-century publishing houses. In excellent condition. Strong, sharp impression. Uncolored as published. No tears or foxing. 390 x 520 mm.

Romania Imperii Ova Oriens – Baudrand · Giovanni Rossi, Rome 1669 · Antique Map Eastern Roman Empire · Original Copper Engraving