Johann Baptist Homann (Homann’s Heirs) African Maps

Johann Baptist Homann is an important figure in antique map and historical map circles. He was born in Nuremberg in Southern Germany and has made several important contributions to cartography, especially maps that explore the Americas. Princeton states that Homann was a former Imperial Geographer of the Holy Roman Empire. He was also a member of the Prussian Academy of Sciences. Homann found his own map publishing company in 1702. He managed to establish the company to the point that it has been recorded in history as one of the most important map publishing organizations of the eighteenth century.  Several of his antique maps can be found in various collections. The map below is from our African collection.

Homann is most famously known for producing “his masterpiece Grosser Atlas ueber die ganze Welt (Grand Atlas of all the World.” Homann died in 1724 but his legacy continued with his son Christophe along with other heirs. The company was known as “Homann Erben”, “Homannianos Heredes”, “Heritiers de Homann”.  The business remained prominent in Germany until the next century and has had an important influence on map publishing in Germany it is now commonly called Homann’s Heirs. Today maps from the Homann’s Heirs can be found in antique and historical map collections all over the world.