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17th century colour illustration of the globe

Venturing Out

Theatrum Orbis Terrarum

Abraham Ortel

1574


First published in 1570 by Coppenium Diesth, Theatrum Orbis Terrarum is considered the world’s first atlas and reflected the lifelong work of Abraham Ortel (c1527-98), who was known simply as Ortelius.

Acquiring the best maps he could from their place of origin, Ortelius re-drew them to a standard size and orientation, and wrote a commentary for each map.

Curiously, the lower portion of his world map features a vast southern continent, `Terra Australis Incognita’. It was believed that such lands existed to counterbalance the known regions of the northern hemisphere.

Ortelius' atlas was incredibly successful. Between 1570-1612, 42 editions were printed by Coppenium Diesth in Antwerp, selling an astonishing 7,300 copies.