de Wit, Frederick
1690

Frederick de Wit's map of Crete with Heraklion, Chania and more

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Insula Candia Ejusque Fortificatio edita per F. de Wit

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Highly decorative antique hand-colored map by de Wit of the island of Crete (Creta), Greece with six attractive insets plans showing the fortifications of Canea/ Chania, Candia / Heralkion, Spinalonga / Kalydon, Retimo/ Rethimnon, Thine / Tinos and Suda. The insets are after drawings of Sébastien Pontault de Beaulieu (1612-1674). Pontault, a French engineer, is considered to have been the inventor of the art of military topography.

For the insets of both Chania and Iraklio Wit has included a legend of key place names keyed alphabetically to locations on the plans. In the interior of this lovely map of Crete Wit includes mountains, rivers, villages, lakes, forts, and he records an extensive road network ranging widely across the island. Decorative elements include square-rigged ships, galleys, and putti carrying a sheet containing the title block.

At upper left are portions of the nearby islands of Kythera ("Cerigo") and Antikythera ("Cecerigo"). Fortifications of Spinalonga Island or Kalydon (just north of the Spinalonga Peninsula, near Elounda and Agio Nikolaos) are shown at bottom right. During the Venetian occupation of Crete Spinalonga Island was home to a fortress controlled by the Ventians until 1715.

From Amsterdam ca. 1690. Attribution reads: "by Frederick de Wit inde Kalverstraat inde Witte Paskaert". Plate 23. Manuscript numeric "60" in top right corner.

CREATOR: de Wit, Frederick

PUBLICATION DATE: 1690

GEOGRAPHIC AREA: Greece

BODY OF WATER: Aegean Sea

CONDITION: Very Good. One skillful repair on verso at the bottom vertical centerfold. Laid to later paper for strength. Ample margins and no apparent condition issues.

COLORING: Old wash hand-coloring.

ENGRAVER:

SIZE: 21 " x 18 "

ITEM PHYSICAL LOCATION: 0

PRICE: $

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