Fine, Early Plan of the Enchanting City of Bruges

BRAUN, G. & HOGENBERG, F. [Cologne, 1572]

Bruges.   BRAUN, G. & HOGENBERG, F.  [Cologne, 1572]  Brugae, Flandricarum Urbium Ornamenta.  12 ½ x 18 ¼ inches.  Fine hand color with detailing in gold; excellent condition.

Beautifully colored, gold-highlighted plan of Bruges, the “Venice of the north” and one of Europe's best preserved cities.  The plan clearly displays the city's network of canals.  Until the beginning of the 16^th century, Bruges a center for the trade in fine luxury goods, including jewelry and textiles, with several royal families as clients.  In the early 14^th century, what some believe to be the first stock exchange opened in Bruges. Today in Bruges can be found some of Europe’s best preserved, early architecture. By the start of the 16^th century, Bruges had entirely lost its access to the North Sea due to the silting of the Zwin Channel.  This had the effect of stunting economic life and essentially freezing the city in time, in large part accounting for its remarkable state of preservation today.

In this view, Bruges can be seen protected by two concentric moats, while other canals meander through the city. Though Bruges’s city walls were ordered demolished by the French in the 14^th century, some sections can be seen still standing. Much of what is in this view still stands today, including in the center of the plan the city’s famous belltower and square. In the lower right, a nobleman and woman are shown in the local dress of the period. 

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