SOLOMON'S TEMPLE JERUSALEM ISRAEL 1592ca BÜNTING UNUSUAL ANTIQUE ORIGINAL VIEW

Description: Striking and highly detailed very interesting 1592 approx. Heinrich Bünting's copper engraved view depicting a meticulous and idealized Renaissance architectural reconstruction of Solomon's Temple in Jerusalem, based on descriptions found in sacred texts (the Book of Kings and Chronicles):
 
The Three Halls (Vorhöffe): The Vorhoff der Heiden (Hall of the Gentiles/Pagans), the Halle Salomonis (Solomon's Porch), and the Ober Vorhoff (Upper Hall) are clearly identifiable and described in the German-language cartouches.
 
The Temple: The central structure is dominated by the repeated inscription Gülden Dach des Tempels (Golden Roof of the Temple), surmounted by the cardinal points written in Latin (Meridies in alto, Septentrio below, Oriens to the left, and Occidens to the right).
 
Geographical Context: The surrounding topography of Jerusalem is depicted on the right, marked by the mountainous relief known as Finster Thal Cedron (The Dark Valley of the Kidron Valley).
 
This scarce map is from Heinrich Bünting's "Itinerarum Sacrae Scripturae". It is believed that more than 60 editions of Bunting's Itinerarum were published in various languages between 1581 and 1757. Bunting's work describes the travels of religious figures in the Bible and was the most complete summary of geography of the Bible of this period. “Itinerarum Sacrae Scripturae” was first printed in Helmstadt in 1581 and was produced in numerous editions in Germany. The book was so popular, it was also issued with text in Danish, Swedish, Dutch, Czech, and English.

Date: 1592 approx. ( undated )

Dimension: Paper size approx.: cm 38,3 x 28,6

Condition: Very strong and dark impression on good paper. Paper with chains. Map old progonal colored. Corners partially missing. Sheet browned. Small tears. Sheet partially reinforced on the reverse. Conditions are as you can see in the images.

Cartographers: Henrich Bünting (1545-1606) was a Protestant theologian and teacher born in Hanover, in what is now Germany. He attended the University of Wittenberg and graduated in 1569. He then began work as a preacher but caused some controversy with his teachings; he was dismissed from appointments in both Lemgo and Goslar.
 
He is best known today for his book, Itinerarium Sacrae Scripturae (Travel book through Holy Scripture), a travel collection and commentary of the geography of the Bible. The book provided the most complete summary of biblical geography then available and described the Holy Land by following the travels of various notable people from the Old and New Testaments. First published in Madgeburg in 1581, Itinerarium Sacrae Scripturae was a very popular book for the time. Over 60 editions were published between 1581 and 1757. 
 
A particularly notable feature of the book were its many woodcut maps, many of them showing unique depictions of geographic features and continents. In addition to the conventional maps, the book also contained three figurative maps; the world depicted using a cloverleaf design (thought to possibly represent the Trinity with Jerusalem in the center), Europe in the form of a crowned and robed woman, and Asia as the winged horse Pegasus.