[Middle East]

Southeastern part of Nicolosi's map of Europe, from Nicolosi's landmark atlas, a state sponsored work published in response to the work of Sanson and others outside of Italy. Nicolosi's unusual 4 sheet continental maps are unique in their presentation and style. The maps were the result of meticulous compilations by Nicolosi.

Nicolosi's Dell' Hercole e studio geografico is one of the most important Italian Atlases of the 17th Century and incorporates Nicolosi's fine work. Nicolosi maps rarely appear on the market. An essential collector's map of the region.

Giovanni Battista Nicolosi (1610-1670), also known as Giovan Battista, was a Sicilian priest, geographer and cartographer, who worked for the Vatican's Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples (or Propaganda Fide) under Pope Gregory XV. Officially, the Fide office was established to promote missionary work across the globe, but the reality was that it constituted an important office for the maintenance and dilation of the Church’s power in an ever-expanding world.

Arriving in the papal capital around 1640, Nicolosi devoted himself to the study of letters, sciences, geography and languages. In 1642, he published his Theory of the Terrestrial Globe, a small treatise on mathematical geography, and, a few years later, his guide to geographic study, which was a short treatise on cosmography and cartography. Both works reflected a Ptolemaic world view, but his guide to geographic study would soon serve as an introduction to Nicolosi’s real magnum opus, Dell' Ercole e Studio Geografico, which was first published in 1660. His Theory of the Terrestrial Globe, on the other hand, brought Nicolosi to the attention of broader scientific circles and earned him the Chair in Geography at the University of Rome.

Etching with contemporary outline colour, in good condition.