1561 / 1599 Ruscelli / Rosaccio Double-Hemisphere Map of the World

This is a 1598 second-state issue of Girolamo Ruscelli's 1561 map of the world. In its first 1561 state, it was the earliest acquirable double-hemisphere world map, but even this later issue remains one of the earliest acquirable maps to use this format.

A Closer Look

Like most maps in Ruscelli's Ptolemy, the geographic details were based on Giacomo Gastaldi's (1500 - 1566) 1548 Ptolemy. Here, the double-hemispherical projection transforms this map into a fully new composition. Amongst printed maps, it is predated only by the unacquirable 1555 Georgio Sideri Calapoda (fl. 1537 - 1565) map. The 1598 edition of Ruscelli's Ptolemy was edited by Giuseppe Rosaccio, who updated the maps to make them more competitive. In this case, there are significant geographical changes, most notably the addition of a massive southern continent - Terre Australis.

The Map

The map is oriented to the north, with the three parts of the Old World in the right hemisphere and the fourth part of the world - the Americas - dominating the left. Some geographical elements are derived from Gastaldi's 1546 and 1548 world maps, but overall, this map diverges from any prior source. As with Gastaldi's maps through 1561, Ruscelli's map shows a clear connection between the continents of Asia and North America. Ruscelli adds a distinctive river system extending from the Gulf of California into the continent and includes abundant imaginary mountain ranges in North America.

New Shores

Ruscelli's 1561 issue of the map implied the connection of North America and Asia, using broken lines to indicate unexplored or speculative territory - this was also the case with the southwest coast of South America. These coasts still bear the notations Littus incognitum and Littus ignotum, but the American Pacific Northwest is no longer ghosted, and there is an upturn in the coastline to suggest that it did not continue around to connect with Asia. The southern coasts of Tierra del Fuego and Java are no longer incomplete: Java is shown as a definite island, while Tierra del Fuego is connected to the southern continent, Terre Australis, after Mercator and Ortelius. The northern promontory of this territory, in the vicinity of Java (roughly in the location of Northern Australia), bears the place name Lucach, also influenced by the same mapmakers.

An Island Northeast

Ruscelli may have derived his remarkable insular northeast America from the conflation of the Hudson River and the Saint Lawrence appearing on the Gastaldi-Ramusio map. Still, these features do not appear on any of Gastaldi's printed world maps. The bay separating the American Northeast from Terra Florida may have been influenced by the Sea of Verrazano, which appears prominently on Gastaldi's Carta Marina but not his other 1548 world map. This feature remains unchanged on this 1598 edition.

South America

The overall shape of South America, including the mouth of the Rio de la Plata, is similar to the c. 1561 Gastaldi but differs from his earlier works and is very distinctive in its broad and angular shape.

The North Part of the World

Ruscelli's depiction of the Arctic is distinctive: North America extends over the Pole and bears the place name Hyperborei - a classical geographical term originally applied to northern Eurasia, and later to northern Asia. Its presence here emphasizes Ruscelli's connection of Asia and North America. A Mare Glaciale covers the rest of the north. This feature appears unique to the Ruscelli, as neither Gastaldi's maps nor any other contemporary works show the Arctic in this way.

Africa

The delineation of Africa, including the scattering of islands north of Madagascar, is roughly consistent with Gastaldi's geography. It preserves the Ptolemaic sourcing of the Nile and illustrates a large Senegal River with many tributaries. Madagascar itself is accurately shaped, though without interior detail. It is named only with the initials - 'S.L.' (San Lorenzo, an early term for the island).

Southeast Asia

South Asia is mostly recognizable. The Indian peninsula, though narrow, resembles modern (as opposed to Ptolemaic) geography. Sri Lanka is marked with a 'Z,' indicating that it is being identified as Zeylon (Ceylon), as opposed to Taprobana, which we see contracted into 'Tapr.' and applied to Sumatra. Borneo also appears and is initialed 'Bor.' Java has an indeterminate coast, and the island north of Borneo (roughly corresponding to the Philippines) shows a similarly tentative northern shore. Japan is identified with the initials' IA' ('Iaponiae' after Ortelius). New Guinea, an archipelago on the 1561 map, follows Ortelius.

Publication History and Census

This map was engraved for the 1561 first Ruscelli edition of Claudius Ptolemy's La Geografia di Claudio Tolomeo. In 1598, this work was edited and republished by Giuseppe Rosaccio. A further edition with minor typographical differences appeared in the 1599 edition. While only one separate example is listed in OCLC (National Library of Australia), the map occasionally appears on the market, and the volume is reasonably well represented in institutional collections.