1552 Two Munster Leaves: Denmark, Queen Margaret

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1552 Description of Denmark from "Cosmographia" by Sebastian Münster
Valdemar II the Victorious, Erik IV; Christopher I; Erik V; Erik Menved; Christopher II; Valdemar IV; Queen Margaret I; Wars with Holstein, Sweden; Christopher of Bavaria
Two Woodcut Leaves; Two Pictures

Two woodcut leaves from "Cosmographia" by Sebastian Münster. Latin edition; Basel printing house of Sebastian Heinrich-Petri 1552. Book IV ("De regnis Septentrion"), pages 823-6.

Sebastian Münster (1488-1552) was a German cartographer, cosmographer, and Hebrew scholar whose Cosmographia (1544; "Cosmography") was the earliest German description of the world and a major work - after the Nuremberg Chronicle of 1493 - in the revival of geographic thought in 16th-century Europe. Altogether, about 40 editions of the Cosmographia appeared during 1544-1628. Although other cosmographies predate Münster's, he is given first place in historical discussions of this sort of publication, and was a major influence on his subject for over 200 years.

In nearly all works about Münster, his Cosmographia is given pride of place. Despite this, we still lack a detailed survey of its contents from edition to edition, during the years 1544 to 1628, and an account of its influence on a wide range of scientific disciplines. Münster obtained the material for his book in three ways. He used all available literary sources. He tried to obtain original manuscript material for description of the countryside and of villages and towns. Finally, he obtained further material on his travels (primarily in south-west Germany, Switzerland, and Alsace). Cosmographia contained not only the latest maps and views of many well-known cities, but included an encyclopaedic amount of detail about the known - and unknown - world and undoubtedly must have been one of the most widely read books of its time. Aside from the well-known maps and views present in the Cosmographia (including the first separate printed map of the Western Hemisphere), the text is thickly sprinkled with vigorous woodcuts: portraits of kings and princes, costumes and occupations, habits and customs, flora and fauna, monsters and horrors. Münster divided his material into six books. Book I is a useful summary of astronomical-mathematical and physical geography. Book II deals with England, Spain, France, and Italy. Book III deals with Germany and surrounding lands. Book IV embraces northern, eastern, and south-eastern Europe. Books V (Asia and America) and VI (Africa) are of modest proportions.

These authentic leaves from the early Latin edition of Cosmographia are devoted to history of Denmark. They cover the period between c. 1202 and 1448. Page 823 (first section) describes the kingdom of the Valdemars and the period of dissolution and consolidation prior to the reign of Valdemar IV. Valdemar IV (1340-75) united his country under his own rule. The marriage of his daughter Margaret to the Norwegian king Haakon VI in 1363 made possible the unification of Denmark and Norway.

Thereafter follows a section on Queen Margaret I - regent of Denmark (from 1375), of Norway (from 1380), and of Sweden (from 1389), who, by diplomacy and war, pursued dynastic policies that led to the Kalmar Union (1397), which united Denmark, Norway, and Sweden until 1523. Margaret elected her sister's daughter's son Eric of Pommerania as her successor. He became king of Norway in 1389. Eric was later crowned King of the three Kingdoms in Kalmar. Margaret was still, however, the regent of all three countries, and she did not allow Eric to take part in the government until the last years of her life. In foreign affairs, Margaret's main goals were to put an end to German expansion to the north and to extend and secure Denmark's southern borders, goals she tried to achieve through diplomatic means. An armed conflict did, however, break out with Holstein, and during the war Margaret died unexpectedly in 1412. Pages 824 (bottom) and 825 describe the war between Denmark and Holstein. The first section on p. 826 talks about the unrest in Sweden. In 1434 a rebellion broke out in Bergslagen (central Sweden) under Engelbrekt Engelbrektsson ("Engelbertus"), who was elected guardian of the realm. He and the Swedish council renounced their allegiance to Erik. The spirit of revolt spread to Erik's enemies in Denmark and Norway, and in 1438 he went into exile in Gotland. He was deposed in all three kingdoms during the years 1438-42. Erik's nephew, Christopher of Bavaria ("Christophorus Bauarus"; p. 826, second section), was called by the Danish council to become king in 1440 and was later accepted as king in both Sweden and Norway. In 1445 he married to Dorothea of Brandenburg.

The leaves contain two woodcut pictures:

• Queen Margaret riding a horse
• Royal wedding in Copenhagen ("Nuptiae regales in Copenhagen")

Pages measure 8.25 x 12.25 inches. Wide margins suitable for framing. Printed on laid paper. The leaves are in good condition. Imperfections: browning; minor staining in margins; two small tears in margins (far from the print; repaired). Will look great with a mat and frame.

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