Havana een vermaerde haven in't Noorder Amerika, op't eilant Kuba / Havana insulae Cubae imo totus Occidentis, notiffimg portus

Amsterdam: Schenk, 1702. unbound. Map. Copper plate engraving with original hand color. Image measures 8 1/2" x 10 1/2"

This rare view of Havana, Cuba appeared in Schenk's 1702 "Hecatompolis, sive Totius orbis Terrarum Oppida Nobiliora Centum", a beautiful collection of engravings including 100 views of ports on four continents. The port city is seen from the sea, outside the entrance to the port, with a large ship in the foreground, and other smaller ships approaching the harbor. Engraved after Montanus, 1682. In very good condition, with overall toning and some foxing to the right margin, not affecting the image.

Petrus Schenk (c.1660-1711) was a German engraver and cartographer. He began his training in Amsterdam in the art of mezzotint and soon began working closely with Gerard Valck. The two took advantage of the bustling cartographic trade in the city and quickly expanded their business from portraits and prints into maps and globes. In 1700, Schenk grew the business further by moving to Leipzig, Germany and opening a shop. As his sons and grandson returned to the Netherlands to become active engravers as well, the Schenk firm developed into one of the best-known publishing houses in 18th-century Amsterdam. This map attests to Schenk's prolific production and skill in both cartographic artistry and business.