Related UCL Art Collections Artwork
Map title: The Siege of Regensburg by Mattaeus Merian the Elder

In essence, what will thrive? What will work and who will be satisfied? And who is the authority? What is being sold and what is being made and from where? And for how much? Produce to labor to intelligence to defense to products to land. What of these is the most valuable? And who measures this? What measures this? What sets the price? How much blood is shed? And what is the quantity of the virtue lost, or gained? What is gained? What is lost? What alliances are formed? What enemies made? Who are the authors of these stories? And do they speak of the actual journey or of the mission itself? How are these stories preserved? And where? And what does accuracy mean in all of this?

What you see is an etching made to document the proud moment when the Imperialists recapture the government region of Regensburg; the capital of Bavarian Germany from the Protestants after the 30 Year War in 1634; a war initially between the Catholics and the Protestants. A proud and solid cavalry is seen embarking upon a proud and prosperous city. The compass in the foreground shows we are viewing Regensburg from the south, looking north and what victory we are shown! This particular print can be found in the the Theatri Europaei, (the European theatre) which is a volume of books that covers European history from 1633 - 1638. It contains maps, portraits and battles scenes engraved by an artist with the prominent title of Mattheaus Merian the Elder, from Basle, Switzerland who lived and practiced in Frankfurt, Germany.

With my images, I offer just the compass. So you yourself can choose from which angle to look as I, the artist, stand in the center.

Stephanie O'Connor