The greatest Swedish topographical work, with 354 engraved plates

Erik Dahlbergh:

Suecia antiqua et hodierna. 1-3.

[Stockholm c. 1667-1716.] Bound in standing folio, with plates folding. (31 x 19,5 cms.) 354 engraved plates. Without the extra plate ”Templum Ulricae Eleonorae”.

+ Printed index at end. The rare first edition, [1726], 14 pp.

+ All that was printed of the unfinished text by Lagerlöf & Hermelin (variant ”a” without engraved vignettes etc.), [Holmiae 1696-1701]. Folio. Pp. 1-104, 125-32.

Two volumes bound in standing folio format. Worn and dry full calf. Plates well preserved as a whole, but small repairs, creases, minor stains, short tears and darkening of the paper occur. First title cut into image at foot, the large folding Stockholm plate 1:13 somewhat worn and soiled with a few repairs to verso, folding Uppsala plate 1:56 with marginal repair affecting a small portion of the frame, Ekolsund (1:90) with a few repairs to verso, Ludgonæs (2:21) with marginal corner loss, Noorsholm (3:23) with small scratch in lower portion of image.

Erik Dahlbergh’s (1625­1703) inspiration for this magnum opus was the ”Theatrum Europaeum”. His privilege is dated 1661, engraving began in 1667 and continued for decades, ending only in about 1715. The plates depict Sweden’s castles, cities and mounuments, and a large number of mostly foreign engravers were employed: Nicolas and Adam Perelle, Jean Marot, Jean Le Pautre, F. Campion, Dionysius Padt Brugge, Willem Swidde, Erik Reitz, Martin Mytens, Johannes Van den Aveelen and Samuel von Blesendorf. The work was never actually published, but used for important gifts of the state. The plates are still preserved, and impressions of decreasing quality have been pulled well into the 20h century.

Sten G. Lindberg, Swedish Books, 37. Collijn, 1600-talet, col. 197. A monograph by Börje Magnusson and Jonas Nordin about the illustrations was published in 2015 (in Swedish), ”Drömmen om storkmakten. Erik Dahlberghs Sverige”. Dahlbergh’s drawings for the work are in the Royal Library, Stockholm, and were published in four volumes in 1963-70.

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