Von Bergwerck so Teutscher Nation/ und besonder im Elsaß zu unsern zeiten gefunden/ unnd was wunderbarlicher ding darinn gesehn werden

Title

Von Bergwerck so Teutscher Nation/ und besonder im Elsaß zu unsern zeiten gefunden/ unnd was wunderbarlicher ding darinn gesehn werden

Description

Representation of a coal mine

ca. 1550

Artist

Münster (1489-1552)

Sebastian Münsters (1489-1552) is one of the famous cosmographers of the Renaissance. Its real importance in the field of cartography is based on its famous cosmography, which he published in 1544 with 24 double-sided maps (including Moscow and Transylvania). The material for this came largely from research and the collection of information from around 1528, which he initially only wanted to use for a description of Germany, but was now sufficient for a map of the entire world and ultimately led to a cosmography. He constantly tried to improve this work, i.e. to replace or add to maps. In the edition of 1550, only 14 maps were taken over from the earlier editions. The 52 maps printed in the text were also only partially based on the old maps. The great success of this cosmography was also based on the precise work of the woodcuts mostly by Hans Holbein the Younger, Urs Graf, Hans Rudolph Deutsch and David Kandel. It was the first scientific and at the same time generally understandable description of the knowledge of the world in German, in which the basics of history and geography, astronomy and natural sciences, regional and folklore were summarized according to the state of knowledge at that time. Cosmography is the science of describing the earth and the universe. Until the late Middle Ages, geography, geology and astronomy were also part of it. The first edition of the Cosmographia took place in 1544 in German, printed in Heinrich Petri's office in Basel. Heinrich Petri was a son from the first marriage of Münster's wife to the Basel printer Adam Petri. Over half of all editions up to 1628 were also published in German. However, the work has also been published in Latin, French, Czech and Italian. The English editions all comprised only a part of the complete work. Viktor Hantzsch identified a total of 46 editions in 1898 (German 27; Latin 8; French 3; Italian 3; Czech 1) that appeared from 1544 to 1650, while Karl Heinz Burmeister only had 36 (German 21; Latin 5; French 6; Italian 3; Czech 1) that appeared between 1544 and 1628. The first edition from 1544 was followed by the second edition in 1545, the third in 1546, the fourth edition in 1548 and the fifth edition in 1550, each supplemented by new reports and details, text images, city views and maps and revised altogether. Little has been known about who - apart from the book printers Heinrich Petri and Sebastian Henricpetri - were responsible for the new editions after Münster's death. The 1628 edition was edited and expanded by the Basel theologian Wolfgang Meyer. With Cosmographia, Sebastian Münster has published for the first time a joint work by learned historians and artists, by publishers, wood cutters and engravers. The numerous vedute are usually made as woodcuts. Sebastian Münster obtained his knowledge from the travel reports and stories of various scholars, geographers, cartographers and sea travelers. Long after his death, "Kosmographie" was still a popular work with large editions: 27 German, 8 Latin, 3 French, 4 English and even 1 Czech editions appeared. The last edition appeared in Basel in 1650.

Historical Description

The oldest form of raw material extraction known as mining dates back to the occasional use of flint deposits in the Stone Age. Small work parties went to flint mines for a few days to obtain raw material for the manufacture of tools. In Stone Age cultures (North America, New Guinea), this method of working has persisted in part to the present day. A permanent or seasonal mining operation requires agriculture with surpluses and trade, since the miners must be fed without being able to produce food themselves and produce more products themselves than the community can utilize. The conditions for this were generally not present until the Copper Age. The great need of the advanced civilizations of the Near East for metals was also met early on from European mines. The best researched copper mining area in Europe is that of Mitterberg in the Salzburger Land. The heyday of medieval mining in Central Europe was the 13th century. It declined in the 14th century, mainly because no new deposits were discovered. From the middle of the 15th century, a new upswing set in. In the European Middle Ages, silver, copper, iron, lead and tin ores were mainly mined. Salt mining was also important. The monasteries also played a rather important role as mining lords. In many cases, German miners transferred their expertise to more distant regions, such as France (for example Alsace, Vosges), Hungary, Italy (for example copper ore in Tuscany) and Sweden. The process also partly took place within the framework of eastern colonization. German mining entrepreneurs were involved in Swedish mines. Important mining areas in the Habsburg Monarchy were in Carinthia, Styria, the Salzkammergut and in Tyrol as far as Trento. The Schwaz silver treasure became a decisive factor in financing the Habsburg plans for world empire.