GRENOBLE & ROMANS SUR-ISИRE FRANCE 1581 BRAUN & HOGENBERG UNUSUAL ANTIQUE VIEWS ANTIQUE COPPER ENGRAVED CITY VIEWS OF GRENOBLE & ROMANS old times rare books and maps (20116) 100% positiveSeller's other itemsSeller's other itemsContact seller US $92.00 GRENOBLE & ROMANS SUR-ISИRE FRANCE 1581 BRAUN & HOGENBERG UNUSUAL ANTIQUE VIEWS Description Grenoble. === Gratianopolis, Acusia Norv. Colonia, Galliж Narbonensis ad Jsaram flu. urbs munitiЯima, nunc vulgo, uti Joannes Poldus phibet, Grenoble. / Romans. === Romas Delphinatus vulgo Daufine in Gallia oppidu. Description: Striking and highly detailed fine unusual copper engraved map featuring, on one sheet, two bird's-eye views of the French Cities of Grenoble. at the left, & of Romans sur-Isиre, at the right. Each view shows the city with his buildings, churches, streets, gardens, town walls and surrounding landscape. Two simple titles at the top central side, two ornate lettered key cartouche, three Armorials and two inhabitants in their typical dresses adorn the view. Latin text on verso. GRENOBLE TRANSLATION OF CARTOUCHE TEXT: Gratianopolis, a colony of Acusiana or Acusianorum Colonia, a formidably fortified city in Gallia Narbonensis, on the Isиre, today called Grenoble. COMMENTARY BY BRAUN: "Its ancient shape is more elongated than wide, it tapers towards a point and assumes the overall shape of an egg. Lying on level ground at the foot of the mountains, it extends towards the east ...; the Isиre, which flows down from the tops of the Swiss mountains to the east, runs through the city. Toward the north, a beautiful bridge leads over the Isиre to the suburb called St Lawrence." Grenoble, situated at the foot of the French Alps, is seen from an elevated viewpoint from the north. As Braun describes it, the city is protected by an egg-shaped inner and rectangular outer city wall. Numerous churches and towers, their verticals greatly exaggerated, dominate the cityscape; they include the 12th-century cathedral of Notre Dame in the background and, in the foreground, the collegiate church of Saint-Andrй. The Palace of Justice faces the latter, with several towers directly overlooking the river. The city was purportedly renamed Gratianopolis in AD 377 in honour of Emperor Gratian. ROMANS-SUR-ISИRE CARTOUCHE: Romans delfinatus, also Daufine, a city in Gaul. COMMENTARY BY BRAUN: "The small town of Romans lies directly beside the Isиre and is famous for its beauty amongst the cities in the lower reaches of the Dauphinй. Its name is also evidence that it was built either by the Romans or those of Roman descent." As apparent both from the vertical-format bird's-eye view and from the modern-day name of the town, Romans lies on the River Isиre, a tributary of the Rhфne. Situated near the Vercors Mountains, the city arose in the 9th century AD in the wake of the founding of an abbey. It has expanded beyond its historical boundary and the river in the present engraving. The originally Romanesque collegiate church of Saint-Bernard (12th/13th cent.) is located between the large market square (centre) and the river's edge, behind the church attached to the palace of the Vienne archbishops; situated on the bridge on the right is Notre-Dame-sur-le-Pont. Braun G. & Hogenberg F. and the Civitates Orbis Terrarum. The Civitates Orbis Terrarum, or the "Braun & Hogenberg", is a six-volume town atlas and the greatest book of town views and plans ever published: 363 engravings, sometimes beautifully coloured. It was one of the best-selling works in the last quarter of the 16th century. Georg Braun wrote the text accompanying the plans and views on the verso. A large number of the plates were engraved after the original drawings of Joris Hoefnagel (1542-1600), who was a professional artist. The first volume was published in Latin in 1572, and the sixth in 1617. Frans Hogenberg created the tables for volumes I through IV, and Simon van den Neuwel created those for volumes V and VI. Other contributors were cartographers Daniel Freese and Heinrich Rantzau. Works by Jacob van Deventer, Sebastian Mьnster, and Johannes Stumpf were also used. Translations appeared in German and French. Following the original publication of Volume 1 of the Civitates in 1572, seven further editions of 1575, 1577, 1582, 1588, 1593, 1599 and 1612 can be identified. Vol.2, first issued in 1575, was followed by further editions in 1597 and in 1612. The next volumes appeared in 1581, 1588, 1593, 1599 and 1606. The German translation of the first volume appeared from 1574 on, and the French edition from 1575 on. Several printers were involved: Theodor Graminaeus, Heinrich von Aich, Gottfried von Kempen, Johannis Sinniger, Bertram Buchholtz and Peter von Brachel, who all worked in Cologne. Date: 1581 ( undated ) Dimension: Paper size approx.: cm 53,1 x 41,8 Condition: Very strong and dark impression on good paper. Paper with chains. Plate old original colored. Wide margins. Corners partially missing and redone. Small foxing and browning. Small holes restored. Sheet reinforced with contemporary paper. Plate folded. Conditions are as you can see in the images. Mapmakers: Georg Braun (also Brunus, Bruin; 1541 – 10 March 1622) was a topo-geographer. From 1572 to 1617 he edited the Civitates orbis terrarum, which contains 546 prospects, bird's-eye views and maps of cities from all around the world. He was the principal editor of the work, he acquired the tables, hired the artists, and wrote the texts. He died as an octogenarian in 1622, as the only survivor of the original team to witness the publication of volume VI in 1617. Braun was born and died in Cologne. His principal profession was as a Catholic cleric, however, he spent thirty-seven years as canon and dean at the church, St. Maria ad Gradus, in Cologne. His six-volume work was inspired by Sebastian Mьnster's Cosmographia. In form and layout it resembles the 1570 Theatrum orbis terrarum by Abraham Ortelius, as Ortelius was interested in a complementary companion for the Theatrum. The Braun publication set new standards in cartography for over 100 years. Frans Hogenberg (1535–1590, from Mechelen) created the tables for volumes I through IV, and Simon van den Neuwel created those for volumes V and VI. Other contributors were Joris Hoefnagel, Jacob Hoefnagel, cartographer Daniel Freese, and Heinrich Rantzau. Works by Jacob van Deventer, Sebastian Mьnster, and Johannes Stumpf were also used. Primarily European cities are depicted in the publication; however, Casablanca and Mexico City/Cuzco on one sheet[4] are also included in volume I. Frans Hogenberg (1535–1590) was a Flemish and German painter, engraver, and mapmaker. Hogenberg was born in Mechelen as the son of Nicolaas Hogenberg. In 1568 he was banned from Antwerp by the Duke of Alva and travelled to London, where he stayed a few years before emigrating to Cologne. He is known for portraits and topographical views as well as historical allegories. He also produced scenes of contemporary historical events. Hogenberg died in Cologne.