First issue of Rumold Mercator’s map of Europe

The rare first issue of an important map of Europe, still published by the Mercator family. The map was drawn by Rumold Mercator from the wall map of the world by his father Gerard Mercator. Although this map is using the most up-to-date cartography, it still depicts Novaya Zemlya as part of one of the four islands surrounding the North Pole, and the mythical islands of Friesland, Drogeo, St Brandain and Brasil. It appeared in the 'Atlas sive Cosmographicae Meditationes de Fabrica Mundi et Fabricati Figura', published in 1595, the year after Gerard's death.