Sebastian Münster – City View of Lucerne from the Cosmographia, Original 16th-Century Woodcut

RG-2026-172 · This reference is permanently assigned to this work.

ca. 1550–1580 (Cosmographia-Ausgaben)

Technique: woodcut
Publisher: Sebastian Münster, Cosmographia (Verlag Heinrich Petri, Basel); Bildvorlage nach der Etterlin-Chronik
Location: Lucerne
Dimensions: ca. 42 × 32 cm (gerahmt); Darstellung ca. 26,5 × 17,5 cm GR
Frame: Schmaler Goldrahmen mit heller doppelter Passepartout (Goldlinie), hinter Glas – Rahmenmacher-Etikett 'Willen Spiegel Glas Rahmen Luzern'
Condition: good

Price

from CHF 595

About the Work

A genuine piece of early Swiss printing history: Sebastian Münster's 'Cosmographia' was the most successful German-language description of the world in the 16th century, shaping the image of cities for generations. This early bird's-eye view of Lucerne depicts the famous covered wooden bridge over the Reuss and the Water Tower – landmarks that still stand today. An original book woodcut from one of the most widely read publications of the Renaissance, attractively framed.

Provenance

The work comes from Sebastian Münster's 'Cosmographia' and goes back pictorially to the Etterlin chronicle; an explanatory label documents exactly this origin. It was framed by the long-established Lucerne frame maker 'Willen Spiegel Glas Rahmen Luzern', which firmly anchors the sheet in the region it depicts. A view of Lucerne, framed in Lucerne, from the most famous cosmography of the Renaissance.

Inscriptions

Vorderseite Kopf: 'Von dem Teütschen land.' / Seitenzahl 'dxxv' / 'Von der statt Lucern.' — Im Holzschnitt: 'Lucern', 'Die Rüss', 'klein stat', 'Der See'. Textbeginn: 'Lucern das closter auff dem hoff ist gebauwen von Wighardo einem priester...'. Rückseite: 'Das drit buch' / Seitenzahl 'dxxvi' / '...gebauwen, und zum theil von wegen des closters...' sowie Abschnitt 'Von der statt Zürich vnd vilen kriegen die sich...'

Shipping & returns

Insured, carefully packed shipping within Switzerland: flat CHF 25. International shipping (EU, USA, Japan and more) on request. Returns accepted within 30 days of receipt if the work is unchanged; return shipping is paid by the buyer.