Celestial chart of the northern skies

A beautiful chart of the Northern skies, showing the classical constellation. In the top corners the title is on banners under trumpets held aloft by putti. In the bottom corners are figures representing Ptolemy and his pupils, holding scientific instruments. This chart was published in the 'Atlas Coelestis; seu Harmonia Macrocosmica', the only celestial atlas to be produced in the Netherlands before the nineteenth century. It was a compilation of maps of the Ptolemaic universe and the more modern theories of Copernicus and Brahe, and remains the finest and most highly decorative celestial atlas ever produced. It was originally published by Jan Jansson in 1660: this chart comes from Schenk & Valk's reissue.