1606 - 1613 Africa Ex magna orbis terre descriptione Gerardi Mercatoris desumpta, Studio & industria

This is a very fine example of an iconic antique map of the African continent, by Gerard Mercator Junior (grandson of Gerard Mercator). The map was published out of Amsterdam sometime between 1606 and 1613 but deviates little from how Africa was presented by Mercator (the elder) in his monumental, twenty-one sheet wall map of the World, first published in 1569. This old color map of Africa was one of the most influential 16th - 17th century maps of the continent and was widely regarded as one of the most geographically accurate maps of Africa of the era. With great detail, the map delineates the course of rivers and locations of regions, villages, and cities (some fictitious) throughout the continental interior and along the coasts. European exploration is depicted throughout the map, but especially so with the delineation of the Cuama (Zambezi) River in the northern portion of Benamataxa. Much of the interior geography of the map was derived from Ptolemaic beliefs, most notably is the