Description

A map with decorative original colouring, was made by an obscure map-maker Johannes Ratelband and issued after his death in a small travel atlas by the de la Feuille family. The de la Feuilles were Huguenots and in 1683 moved to Amsterdam, as part of the mass exodus of highly-skilled craftsmen and artisans, fleeing the anti-Protestant climate of Louis XIV’s France.  The arrival of the Huguenots breathed new life into the Dutch economy and saw Amsterdam become the leading centre in many niche trades. The De la Feuilles made most of their living from small-sized maps, such as those features in the Atlas Portatif (1701) and the Tablets Guerrières (1706), which were easily affordable to the general public.

However, Jacob de la Feuille also produced a number of finely engraved folio-sized maps, which are today scarce, as they seem to have been produced on a limited issue ‘boutique’ basis.  These include, a map of London (1690), Malta (1696) and the present map of the Danube.  He also compiled composite atlases, including both his own maps and other mapmakers’ works and, likewise, some of his maps were included in composite atlases compiled by others.  Upon his death, in 1719, the business was continued by Paul de la Feuille.