Belleforest’s 16th-Century Woodcut Map of France

François de Belleforest. DESCRIPTION GENERALE DE TOUTE LA FRANCE. From La Cosmographie Universelle de tout le Monde. Paris: Nicolas Chesneau and Michel Sonnius, 1575. Woodcut map with partial hand coloring; with title at the top, a large cartouche and a scale of miles on the right, and the coat of arms of France on the left; presented behind glass in a wooden frame ready for display.

DOA 16 ¾ x 22 ½ in.

The map is a woodcut version of Ortelius’s engraved map of France. It was included in François de Belleforest’s La Cosmographie Universelle de tout le Monde which was a French reprint of the original German edition of Sebastian Münster's Cosmographia (Basel, 1544).

(3) vertical folds and one horizontal fold, most or all as issued, with some additional creasing; with toning, areas of browning, mild foxing, faint damp staining, and light grime with a few spots of soiling; several areas of separation, tearing, and repair; not examined outside of frame; frame with chipping and insect holes.