Gastaldi / Forlani Map of Africa

Gastaldi, Giacomo (1500-1566) & Forlani, Paolo (Fl. 1560-1571)
La Descripttione Dell'Africa. Engraved Map. Venice: Forlani, 1562.
19" x 25 1/4" sheet, 30 1/4" x 37" framed.
The most important map of Africa published during the Renaissance: The map that showed the Venetians why they lost the spice trade because Vasco da Gama discovered a fast route to the Indies by sail around the Cape of Good Hope. Created originally by the foremost Italian cartographer of the 16th century, Giacomo Gastaldi, and painted on the Palazzo Ducale walls, the map was painted over and lost to posterity. It was preserved, however, in the form of this splendid map of Africa, finely engraved and published by Paolo Forlani in 1562.
Comparable: Swaen, 2007 - $50,512.