Old Map of Seville

Historical Background

This old map of Seville was published in 1588 by Georg Braun and Frans Hogenberg in Volume IV of Civitates Orbis Terrarum, the great six-volume collection of town plans and city views issued in Cologne between 1572 and 1617. It depicts Seville during the period when the city served as Spain’s principal gateway for officially regulated trade with the Americas.

Map Details

• Original title: Sevilla
• Editors and publishers: Georg Braun and Frans Hogenberg
• First published: Cologne, 1588
• Original publication: Civitates Orbis Terrarum, Volume IV
• Format: Engraved bird’s-eye city view
• Area shown: Walled Seville, the Guadalquivir and Triana
• Viewpoint: Looking across the Guadalquivir from the Triana side towards the city
• Notable features: Seville Cathedral, the Giralda, Torre del Oro, city walls, boat bridge and river traffic

Seville and the Guadalquivir

The Guadalquivir dominates the foreground and separates the walled city from Triana. A bridge formed from boats crosses the river at the left, providing an important connection between the two communities before Seville acquired a permanent bridge. On the city side, the Torre del Oro stands prominently beside the waterfront.

Numerous vessels occupy the river, ranging from small local craft to larger sailing ships. Their inclusion reflects the importance of Seville’s harbour and its position as the administrative centre of Spain’s transatlantic trade. From 1503, the Casa de Contratación regulated voyages, cargoes and commercial activity connected with Spain’s overseas territories from the city.

The Walled City

Within the walls, the closely packed streets are presented as an elevated pictorial view rather than a measured street plan. Seville Cathedral and its Giralda tower rise conspicuously above the surrounding buildings, making them the principal landmarks of the city.

The map also records gates, towers, churches and roads extending into the surrounding Andalusian countryside. Gardens and cultivated plots occupy the foreground around Triana, while small settlements, windmills and tracks appear beyond the city walls.

The Meaning of 1519

The year 1519 belongs to an event associated with Seville rather than to the publication of this map. On 10 August 1519, Ferdinand Magellan’s Armada de Molucca departed from Seville and travelled down the Guadalquivir towards Sanlúcar de Barrameda before beginning the expedition that completed the first circumnavigation of the world.

The line of shipping shown on the river has often been connected with Seville’s role in expeditions such as Magellan’s. However, Braun and Hogenberg’s engraved city view itself was not published until 1588, almost seventy years after the Armada’s departure.

Heraldry and Human Detail

Three coats of arms decorate the sky above the city, reinforcing Seville’s civic and royal importance. Small figures appear in the foreground near Triana, while people, carts and boats lend activity to the roads and waterfront. These details transform the image from a simple map into a portrait of one of Europe’s most commercially important sixteenth-century cities.