Planisphaerium coeleste

Beautiful double hemisphere celestial chart of the northern and southern sky with allegorical constellations by Matthäus Seutter. The star map is surrounded by seven smaller astronomical diagrams.

At the top left the creation of the world according to the biblical description, at the top right and bottom left the monthly orbit of the moon, next to it the various planetary hypotheses of Tycho Brahe, Copernicus and Ptolemy, as well as the annual orbit of the sun with the four seasons. At the top, a title band with rich figurative decoration. Engraved by Melchior Rein. Early edition still with the engraver's signature in the lower margin, which was later replaced by the printing privilege.

George Matthaus Seutter, a German publisher, cartographer and engraver from Augsburg, was born 1678 as the son of a goldsmith. After an apprenticeship at J. B. Homann in Nuremberg, he returned to his native city of Augsburg and worked in the publishing firm of Jeremiah Wolf. In 1707 he founded his own successful publishing company and produced maps, atlases and globes. Seutter died in 1757. The company went over to his son Albrecht Carl and his stepsons G. B. Probst and T. C. Lotter in after his death in 1757. The latter being regarded as his true successor. According to C. Sandler, following atlases have been published by Seutter:

- Atlas Geographicus oder Accurate Vorstellung der Ganzen Welt, 1725
- Atlas Compendiosus oder die ganze Welt in den nothwendigsten Geographischen Charten
- Atlas Compendiosus Scholasticus
- Atlas Novus Indicubus Instructus, 1728
- Grosser Atlas, 1734
- Atlas Minor, 1744

Beside the atlases, Seutter produced a pair of 20 cm table globes during his early days.

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Celestial Charts - Seutter, George Matthäus - Planisphaerium coeleste