1730 Homann Map of the Kingdom of Prussia

This is Homann's 1728 map of the Kingdom of Prussia, produced to commemorate the day (January 18, 1701) on which Elector Friedrich III of Brandenburg, Crowned himself King Friedrich I in Prussia in Königsberg. The map displays the borders of the Kingdom in Prussia at its inception, presents a portrait of the new king framed by an ornate allegorical cartouche.

A Closer Look

The map reaches from the Baltic Sea to as far south as Toruń on the Vistula River, and spans from the Duchy of Pomerania in the west to part of the Duchy of Samogitia in the east. The region here marked Prussiae Regnum constituted Eastern Prussia; this includes what is now the Kaliningrad Oblast of Russia, and the northeastern portions of Poland (here termed collectively 'Prussia Polonica.') These are divided on the map into the regions Circulus Hockerlandiae, Circulus Natangiensis and Circulus Sambiensis. The map also includes the Pomeranian Voivodeship, and the regions of Mirachowo, Puck, Człuchów, Świecie, Tuchola, Żukowo, Chełmno Voivodeship, Michałowo, and the Malbork Voivodeship.

A Baroque Allegorical Cartouche

The Baltic Sea is filled here with an elaborate cartouche teeming with imagery. It is centered on a portrait of Frederick III, the Electorate of Brandenburg and King of Prussia; his motto 'Suum Cuique' appears at his head. To the left, a quartet of putti support the arms of the Kingdom of Prussia; at the right, with its attendant cudgel-bearing, helmeted putti are the arms of the Prince-Elector of Brandenberg. To the right of Frederick's portrait is a map representing the Electorate of Brandenberg in Germany, which remained his domain and would be the western part of the new Kingdom of Prussia. The new king is here attended on the left by Minerva (goddess of wisdom-in-war); Hermes, (messenger of the gods and patroin of commerce) hovers to the right. Above Frederick, a crown is suspended jointly between the allegories of Fame and Modesty.

Publication History and Census

This map's printing history is convoluted. We have identified this map in no fewer than six separate plates engraved over the course of the eighteenth century, either by Homann and his heirs. The first of these was engraved as early as 1707; we see it appearing in Homann atlases dated 1710 and 1716. An copy of this map, to a second plate, is dated 1724 by the Bibliotheque National de France. The present example, which we are classifying as a third plate, is the first to include Homann's Imperial privilege; this leads us to date it roughly at 1728. A fourth plate replaces the portrait of Frederick III with that of his heir, Frederick William I. This, too, is held by the Bibliotheque National de France, whose dating of 1724 is suspect; we have seen what may be two separate states of this plate, the second of which is the first to include notable geographic improvements, primarily in the eastern extremes of the map. Rumsey's collection has two further versions of the map, dated 1754 and 1788, with a new cartouche lacking either a portrait or a privilege. The map appears to be well represented in institutional collections in its various iterations, but it is difficult to determine specific versions from catalog listings. The map appears on the market from time to time.