Old Map of Leinster, Ireland

Historical Background

Joan Blaeu’s Lagenia, Anglis Leinster presents eastern Ireland as a coloured pattern of counties, rivers and settlements beside the Irish Sea. Published by the Blaeu workshop in Amsterdam during the seventeenth century, the design appeared in successive atlas editions. The title identifies the province in Latin and English; the exact atlas issue of this reproduced impression cannot be established from its front alone.

Map Details

• Original title: Lagenia, Anglis Leinster
• Mapmaker and publisher: Joan Blaeu
• Publication place: Amsterdam
• Publication period: Seventeenth century
• Area shown: Leinster, with adjoining portions of Ulster, Connacht and Munster
• Orientation: North at the top
• Format: Engraved atlas map, with colour applied separately to the original impression
• Visible features: Dublin, Wicklow and Wexford; King’s and Queen’s Counties; sailing ships, royal arms and a crowned Irish harp

Reading the Historic Counties

The county colours make the province’s internal divisions easy to follow. Meath and Westmeath occupy the northern portion, with Dublin beside the coast. Farther south are Kildare, Wicklow, Carlow, Kilkenny and Wexford, their names written in forms that sometimes differ from modern usage.

In the interior, Kinges County and Queenes County preserve the former names of Offaly and Laois. These labels are an immediate reminder that the sheet records an older political landscape. The map also places Louth beyond the principal coloured province at the northern edge, rather than presenting the familiar modern twelve-county arrangement of Leinster.

Smaller territorial labels and family names sit among the settlements, adding another layer of information. The engraved geography therefore rewards close reading as well as comparison with a modern county map.

Dublin and the Eastern Coast

Dublin is marked beside its bay, with islands and coastal features recorded nearby. The coastline continues south through Wicklow towards Wexford and the entrance to Waterford Harbour. Inland, rivers and small pictorial hills organise a dense network of place-names.

The sea occupies much of the right-hand side. Large, flowing lettering identifies Mare Hibernicum, with the English words The Irish Sea below. A cluster of sailing ships appears opposite Dublin, while another vessel lies farther south. Their placement gives the composition a strong maritime character without making it a navigational chart.

Heraldry and the Title Cartouche

Royal arms fill the upper-left corner. Below, the title cartouche is crowned by the Irish harp and surrounded by animals and decorative forms; distance scales sit beneath the lettering. These ornaments balance the open sea with the intricate county geography.

As a fine art print, the map combines recognisable Irish places with historic county names and the decorative engraving of Blaeu’s Amsterdam publishing house.