Von den Ländern Asie. India so ober dem Wasser Gange ligt.

Title

Von den Ländern Asie. India so ober dem Wasser Gange ligt.

Two depictions of mythical creatures of the ancient Indians, this depiction is based on the mythical creatures of the Schedel world map. Reverse with four illustrations such as migratory birds (crows), an ant and a battle.

ca. 1550

Artist

Münster (1489-1552)

Sebastian Münster (1489–1552) was a leading Renaissance cosmographer. His most famous work, the Cosmographia (1544), was a comprehensive description of the world with 24 maps, based on research dating back to 1528. Continuously revised, the 1550 edition already included many new maps. It was the first scientific yet accessible world description published in German, illustrated with numerous woodcuts by artists such as Hans Holbein the Younger. Between 1544 and 1650, the Cosmographia appeared in 46 editions (27 in German) and was translated into several languages. Münster’s work combined the knowledge of scholars, artists, and travelers and remained influential long after his death.

Historical Description

The origin of sea monster myths is mostly unknown. However, there is a large number of written traditions, mostly by seafarers, in which encounters with supposed sea monsters are described. In 1555, the Swedish clergyman Olaus Magnus depicted numerous sea monsters in words and pictures in his works Carta Marina and Historia de gentibus septentrionalibus, whose descriptions were adopted by later authors.