Abraham Ortelius
Abraham Ortelius (1527-1598) was the author of the first printed Atlas of the world and in the Atlas 1584 edition he published the first printed map of China, with much information directly derived from Chinese sources.
Chinae, olim sinarum regionis, nova descriptio
His map was soon reprinted in many cheaper, smaller size editions across all of Europe, and it remained in the market in Turkish and Italian books more than a hundred years until its first appearance.
Turkish version. Photo credit – Daniel Crouch Rare Books
Click to see the transcription
It is easily recognizable for its unusual orientation, with West at the top.
It was also shown on the front page of the first edition of Matteo Ricci’s report on China.
