Lot 115: A Map of Sri Lanka, called Taprobana, from the 1486 Ulm Ptolemy

[MAP - SOUTHEAST ASIA]

PTOLEMY, CLAUDIUS. Duodecima Asie Tabula. [Ulm: Johann Reger, 1486]. The sheet measures 16 x 22 1/2 (41 x 57.5 cm); Woodcut map, hand colored, printed text on verso. Faint spotting and soiling not affecting the map, light wear along the old central fold, reinforced with japanese tissue and with a few minor paper restorations, some very short tears and small chips along margins, a brightly colored and wide-margined example.

In 1482, Lienhart Holle published an edition of Ptolemy's Geographia, the third edition of the atlas overall and the first printed outside of Italy. However, he soon faced bankrupcy, and so the work was taken over by Johann Reger, whose edition appeared in 1486 featuring the same woodcuts with only slight modifications. This map is from Reger's 1486 edition, which is generally identifiable by the brown color in the seas. This map shows Taprobana, a name that is often applied to Sumatra, but here represents Ceylon, now Sri Lanka. This is among the earliest and most sought after maps of the island, and its bright colors and quaint early woodcut style make it one of the most visually striking.