Breve descripcion del mundo o guia geographic de Medrano. Los mas principal de ella en verso [the verses written under the direction of Medrano by Manuel Pellicer y Velasco].

FERNANDEZ DE MEDRANO Sebastian (1688)

£2200.00 

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12mo (140 x 80mm.108pp., folding double engraved world map, woodcut fleurons etc., modern vellum, binding loose

Brussels: L. Marchant,

First edition of this charming work consists of 33 pages of verse actually written by Pellicer y Velasco, followed by a sort of gazetteer of towns in various parts of the world. It was reprinted in 1708 and 1726 by Verdussen. At p. 87 (-p. 102) there is an account of North (with only the briefest mention of Canada) and South America, and from p. 103 to the end is given a list of the possessions of various rulers, which includes Jamaica only for the king of England. The Breve descripcion published by Foppens in Brussels in 1686 is a much larger work

Sebastian Fernandez de Medrano (1646-1705) was a soldier and author of several books on military science. In his preface to the reader he states that he has had Pellicer y Velasco, one of his students, make this verse version which can easily be committed to memory. He specifically mentions 'la estampa del mapa mundi, laqual puse aqui para terminar la idea en la situacion de las provincias... y rios; siendo facil despues buscarlo todo en las cartas grandes...' (A5r-v); in other words the world map is there to give the reader simply an outline. The mappa mundi is specifically mentioned in the title to the 1708 edition (' y con su mappa mundi perceptible aunque pequeño').

Palau 89226; Peeters-Fontainas 436 Copies at JCB; NYPL; Chile; Alexandria, Egypt; Minnesota; The Royal Library, The Hague; London, BL.

Stock Code: 203779

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