Medieval City Maps by Frederick de Wit

An entrepreneurial young man from Gouda, Netherlands, Frederick de Wit (circa 1629-1706), would spend his life becoming one of the most prominent map makers of the 17th Century. 

From his print shop in Amsterdam, the young cartographer published city maps that impressed with their aesthetic quality and unparallelled accuracy.  

His most notable work is known today as the De Wit Atlas, a city atlas containing maps of cities in the Netherlands, parts of Belgium and France. 

The high level of detail lets viewers “explore“ the featured cities at street level, making the maps highly popular as entertainment pieces among the wealthy elites of the time. 

Even today, residents of the old city centres of the featured cities can easily pinpoint their own neighbourhood, street, and even specific buildings on the three-dimensional street projections. 

What makes De Wit’s maps so special, apart from the amazing level of accuracy, is the perspective used. While the street plan itself was drawn from a bird’s eye view, the buildings and details added were drawn in a slanted three-dimensional projection.  

We love the curious, almost toy-like, feel, that this gives the maps. 

Explore our collection of carefully restored De Wit maps featuring Dutch, Belgian, and French cities here.