Map of Madagascar

Map of Madagascar taken from the Atlas van der Hagen, Koninklijke Bibliotheek, The Hague, Part 4.

This map of Madagascar was published in 1662 in Joan Blaeu's Atlas Maior (1598-1673). The island of Madagascar was discovered in 1501 by the Portuguese explorer Diogo Dias. Blaeu based this map on a French source, probably a chart by Etienne de Flacourt (1607-1660) from 1658. In the 17th century the French regarded this island as 'La France Orientale'.

Cf. Österreichische Nationalbibliothek,Vienna, inv. nr. Van der Hem 35:58 and Koninklijke Bibliotheek, Den Haag, inv. nr. 185 B 11 part II, before p. 1.