Les Isfes de Canarie. Insulae Canariae ol. Fortunatae
Cartographer / Artist: Petrus Bertius / Jodocus Hondius
Date Created: c. 1600
Medium: Hand-colored copperplate engraving
Physical Dimensions: 6.3 × 4.5 inches
Geographic Scope: Canary Islands, Madeira, Atlantic Ocean
Archive Catalog ID: fp8-img-2200
Provenance: The Dr. Joseph R. Rubini Archive
Collection: 17th–19th Century French & Iberian Surveys
This finely detailed miniature map depicts the Canary Islands and Madeira archipelago, featuring the Latin name 'Insulae Canariae ol: Fortunatae' across the ocean basin, referencing the classical designation of the 'Fortunate Isles.' Engraved for early seventeenth-century pocket atlases published by Petrus Bertius and featuring geography by Jodocus Hondius, the sheet is crowned with a French typographic header reading 'Les Isfes de Canarie.' The layout illustrates Madeira, Porto Santo, Salvages, Lanzarote, Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria, Tenerife, La Gomera, La Palma, and Ferro (El Hierro). Visually, the map features an ornate inset box in the upper left displaying 'Portus Canaria' complete with a local fortress ('Castellum') and a radiating compass rose. Decorative strapwork frames, a sailing vessel, a sea monster, and a German miles scale bar ('Milliaria Germanica') complete this classic example of Dutch Golden Age miniature cartography.
Condition: Overall age-toning and light surface foxing along the outer margins.. Significant text ghosting (bleed-through) from the French letterpress on the verso.. Original hand-coloring intact with minor ink oxidation and pencil inventory markings in lower margin.




