Talk of the town
A landmark in urban mapping
More than four centuries on from its first publication, discover one of the jewels of urban cartography and civic studies. This quality reprint includes all 363 color plates from the Civitates orbis terrarum, a magnificent collection of town map engravings, produced between 1572 and 1617.
Featuring plans, bird’s-eye views, and maps for all major cities in Europe, plus important urban centers in Asia, Africa, and Latin America, this masterwork in urban mapping gives us a comprehensive view of city life at the turn of the 17th century. It was edited and annotated by theologian and publisher Georg Braun and largely engraved by Franz Hogenberg, but also involved over a hundred different artists and cartographers who contributed not only town views, but additional elements, such as figures in local dress, courtroom scenes, and topographical details, to help convey the situation, commercial power, and political influence of each city.
TASCHEN’s reprint contextualizes the plates with selected extracts from Braun’s original texts on the history and significance of each urban center, as well as detailed commentaries to place each city map in its cartographical and cultural context.
The authors
Stephan Füssel is director of the Institute for Book Studies at the Johannes Gutenberg University in Mainz, and holder of the Gutenberg Chair at the same university. He has published prolifically on the early days of printing, the sale and publication of books between the 18th and 20th centuries, and the future of communications.
Rem Koolhaas is a co-founder of the Office for Metropolitan Architecture. Having worked as a journalist and scriptwriter before becoming an architect, in 1978 he published Delirious New York. His 1996 book S,M,L,XL summarized the work of OMA and established connections between contemporary society and architecture. Among many international awards, he has received the Pritzker Prize (2000) and the Praemium Imperiale (2003). He directed the 2014 Venice Architecture Biennale, coinciding with the first publication of Elements of Architecture.
Braun/Hogenberg. Cities of the World
Hardcover, 9.8 x 14.3 in., 8.50 lb, 504 pages
