Between the Cross and the Crescent: Countries Bordering the Ottoman Empire in the Eyes of Dutch Cartographers

Abstract

The paper presents the results of original research based on the comparative analysis of maps from the atlases of Abraham Ortelius, Jodocus and Henricus Hondius, Willem Blaeu, Jan Janssonius, Gerard and Cornelis de Jode, and Gerardus Mercator. We discover the sources that Dutch cartographers and publishers used for their cartographic representations of the above countries and the descriptions appearing on the reverse of these maps. In this regard, we devote special attention to the role played by Gerardus Mercator and his successors. In addition, we evaluate the significance of Dutch cartography in spreading knowledge about the geography and history of Southeastern Europe and, generally, its impact on the perception of the countries bordering the Ottoman Empire.

Keywords:

• Southeastern Europe
• Dutch cartography
• mapping of territories under Ottoman rule
• Ottoman border