Mercator–Hondius Map of Ireland (Irlandiae Regnum), Dutch Edition, c.1630

Product Description

This rare, beautifully hand-coloured Dutch edition of Irlandiae Regnum was published in Amsterdam around 1630 by the house of Hondius and Jodocus Hondius Jr., continuing the cartographic legacy of Gerardus Mercator (1512–1594).

Printed from Mercator’s original copperplate engraving first issued in 1595, this striking map represents Ireland during one of the most formative eras of early modern cartography. The Dutch text on the reverse is of particular scholarly importance: it expands on the mythical and Iberian origins of the Irish people — a narrative absent from the Latin editions — making it one of the first printed accounts to connect the Irish to the Milesian or Spanish lineage in a widely distributed European atlas.

The map’s precision reflects Mercator’s pioneering projection and attention to coastal form, mountain ranges, and river systems, while the later Hondius colouring enhances its readability and aesthetic warmth. The verso text includes section titles such as Grootte, Grensen, and Vogels, combining geographical, cultural, and natural history observations — a fascinating insight into how 17th-century Europeans viewed Ireland.

This example retains its original central fold as issued for the Hondius atlas. The paper quality, typography, and crisp plate impression indicate a strong early 17th-century strike. It is an exceptional survival of one of the most celebrated maps of Ireland ever printed.

Details

• Engraver: Gerardus Mercator (1512–1594); published by Jodocus Hondius, Amsterdam

• Title: Irlandiae Regnum

• Publication: c.1630, Amsterdam

• Medium: Hand-coloured copperplate engraving on laid paper with Dutch text verso

• Dimensions: Approx. 37 × 49 cm (single sheet, 4 pages, 4 columns of Dutch text on rear, 2 per page)

• Condition: Very good; original central fold as issued; minor age toning and light margin wear

• Provenance: Private European collection

• Rarity: Scarce in Dutch text edition; Iberian/Milesian note unique to this linguistic state

Significance

The Dutch-language version of Irlandiae Regnum occupies a special place in cultural history. It bridges mythology, geography, and early ethnography, preserving one of the few non-Irish, 17th-century attestations of the Milesian origin story — an idea later lost to mainstream historiography.

For collectors of Irish history, early cartography, or the printed word, this edition stands as a tangible intersection of scholarship, myth, and the birth of national identity on the European stage.

Original Dutch (extract, early 17th century orthography)

Hibernia wort van Orpheo, Aristotele, ende Claudiano Jerna, van Juuenaele ende Mela Juuverna, van Diodoro Siculo Iris, van Eustathio Vernia oft Bernia, van de Inwoonders Erin, van de Britan­gelsche Yverdhon, ende van de Engelsche Ireland genoemt. Doch so sijn der verscheyden opinien, van waer dese veelderhande namen haer oorsponck mochten hebben, als van een saecke die seer doncker is. Want sommighe willen Hiberniam derivieren van Hibero, een Spaenschen Overste, de welcke eerstmael ’t selve eylant met een groote machtige hoop en ghesaet volcks ingenomen heeft.

English Translation (faithful rendering)

Hibernia is called by Orpheus, Aristotle, and Claudian Jerna; by Juvenal and Mela Juverna; by Diodorus Siculus Iris; by Eustathius Vernia or Bernia; by its inhabitants Erin; by the Britons Yverdhon; and by the English Ireland.

Yet there are diverse opinions as to whence these various names may have taken their origin, for the matter is very obscure.

Some wish to derive Hibernia from Hibero, a Spanish commander, who was the first to seize this island with a great and powerful company of people.

This passage is remarkable because:

1. It merges classical geography (Greek and Roman authors’ names for Ireland) with early modern mythic ethnology (Iberian descent theory).

2. The phrase “een Spaenschen Overste” (“a Spanish commander”) is the continental print-era echo of the Milesian origin legend the same origin myth later codified in the Leabhar Gabhála Érenn (“Book of Invasions”), where the Irish descend from the sons of Míl Espáine (literally “soldier of Spain”). IN a time when we are all looking for meaning, here is an origin story that is not taught in schools in Ireland ever!

3. The author (Mercator or Hondius’s text editor) acknowledges scholarly uncertainty (“as van een saecke die seer doncker is” — “as from a matter very obscure”), showing early humanist caution while still recording oral and antiquarian lore.

Significance

This single paragraph is the only place in any printed atlas of the early 17th century that connects Ireland’s ethnogenesis to Spain.
It stands between myth and geography: not quite medieval legend, yet not yet modern ethnology. Its inclusion in the Dutch edition — and omission from the Latin — shows Hondius’s Amsterdam workshop catering to a literate mercantile audience curious about the exotic origins of nations, not just their shapes on maps.