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The Atlas Blaeu–Van der Hem: A Seventeenth-Century Masterpiece of Maps
The Atlas Blaeu–Van der Hem is among the most extraordinary cartographic treasures of the seventeenth century. Born from Joan Blaeu’s monumental Atlas Maior (1662), Amsterdam lawyer Laurens van der Hem expanded and hand-embellished it into a visual encyclopedia—now held by the Austrian National Library—containing more than 2,400 maps, charts, views, and drawings.
Below is a curated gallery from the atlas, with brief context. Image selections and original notes courtesy of BibliOdyssey.
Goa (India) — Hand-painted seascape of a Dutch–Portuguese naval engagement off Goa, reflecting VOC power struggles in the Indian Ocean. Credit: BibliOdyssey.Colombo (Sri Lanka) — Bird’s-eye view of the fortified port city, a strategic node in the spice trade. Credit: BibliOdyssey.Pecheli sive Peking — Early Western map of the Beijing region produced for Martino Martini’s China atlas. Credit: BibliOdyssey.Imperii Sinarum Nova Descriptio — General map of China, Korea (no longer as an island), and Japan; among the first to name Hokkaido (Ezo). Credit: BibliOdyssey.Nagasaki & Dejima (Japan) — The fan-shaped artificial island that served as Japan’s sole window to the West during the isolation era. Credit: BibliOdyssey.Malacca (Malaysia) — Strategic entrepôt at the choke point of the Malacca Strait. Credit: BibliOdyssey.Fokien (Fujian) Province — Coastal China opposite Taiwan; a key hub in East Asian maritime trade. Credit: BibliOdyssey.Eijlant Formosa Generael (Taiwan) — Early European depiction of Taiwan and the Pescadores. Credit: BibliOdyssey.Taioan (Tayouan) & Fort Zeelandia — Bird’s-eye view with a key to government buildings, markets, and neighborhoods. Credit: BibliOdyssey.Island Fort — A small fortified outpost with VOC shipping; one of many manuscript views added to the atlas. Credit: BibliOdyssey.Michiel Adriaenszoon de Ruyter — Renowned Dutch admiral of the Anglo-Dutch wars, shown with fleets at sea. Credit: BibliOdyssey.Dutch outrigger — A striking hybrid vessel depicted with Dutch flags and crew. Credit: BibliOdyssey.Puerto Rico — Harbor plan with panoramic insets; fortified approaches and soundings. Credit: BibliOdyssey.Novi Belgii — Decorative Dutch Golden Age map of New England/Mid-Atlantic with a New Amsterdam inset. Credit: BibliOdyssey.Mexico City — “Forma y Levantado de la Ciudad de México,” a plan/elevation view after the 1628 watercolor by Juan Gómez de Trasmonte. Credit: BibliOdyssey.Pascaart vande Parsiaense Kust — Chart of the north Persian Gulf with inset of Qeshm’s island fort. Credit: BibliOdyssey.Aethiopia Superior / Interior — Joan Blaeu’s richly embellished map of NE Africa, with rivers, fauna, and mythic cartography. Credit: BibliOdyssey.St. Helena — View of the island with a Dutch fleet offshore, echoing its strategic Atlantic location. Credit: BibliOdyssey.Bay of Tangier (Morocco) — Detailed plan of the bay, harbor defenses, and urban fabric. Credit: BibliOdyssey.Johannes Mauritius — Portrait of John Maurice of Nassau-Siegen, governor of Dutch Brazil in the 1630s. Credit: BibliOdyssey.Mauritius — Island view; note the dramatic hunting vignette in the lower scene. Credit: BibliOdyssey.
