EXPLORE THE WORLD OF ANTIQUE MAPS

Giacomo de Rossi (1627-1691), his brother Domenico and father Giuseppe had four print shops in Rome where they printed and sold updated maps by other cartographers. Among these were separate maps of the four continents, which credit Willem Blaeu even though they were revised. Only two complete sets of the maps of the four continents are known to have survived, and are to be found in the Vatican library and in the Bibliotecque Nationale, Paris. Our map of Europe, circa 1669, is part of another set, and is the only known copy in private hands. Privately owned examples of the other three continents rarely appear on the market. The map of Europe was printed in four sheets and joined. However, the other three continents were printed in two sheets.