Plan your visit. 225 Madison Avenue at 36th Street, New York, NY 10016.

Plan your visit. 225 Madison Avenue at 36th Street, New York, NY 10016.

Portolan atlas (MS M.507).

Accession number
MS M.507
Object title
Portolan atlas (MS M.507).
Display Date
1542.
Created
Venice, Italy, 1542.
Binding
Venetian, 16th-century maroon morocco gilt over boards with border ornament of running animals.
Credit line
Purchased by J. Pierpont Morgan (1837-1913) in 1912.
Description
16 leaves, bound : vellum, ill. ; 220 x 160 mm
Provenance
An early owner wrote the monogram of Christ (IHS) in rubrics on the upper center of fol. 1; an early inscription in brown ink scribbled on the upper inside front cover; purchased by J. Pierpont Morgan (1837-1913) from Leo S. Olschki in 1912; J.P. Morgan (1867-1943).
Notes
Ms. atlas; written and illuminated in Venice, Italy, in 1542.
Scribe and artist: Battista Agnese; signed and dated on fol. 13v: baptista agnese fecit venetijs 1542 die 15 mai; the windrose is not believed to be by Agnese.
Decoration: 1 illuminated windrose, 1 illuminated zodiacal circle; 1 full-colored world map with 12 blowing wind heads; 9 other maps with details in colors and wash gold.
Script
Roman letters and a cursive script
Language
Italian (Venetian dialect) and Dutch