Prima tavola

An early copperplate map originally published in woodblock format for Ramusio's important and influential travel book "Della Navigationi et Viaggi" published in 1554. This is the first of a set of three maps of Asia. It covers the whole Africa and the west part of Asia. African interior is shown along traditional Ptolemaic lines with the Nile River rising from two large inland lakes. Portuguese colonial settlements are marked around the African coasts and include Lamina (Elmina in Ghana); Manicongo (Luanda, Angola) on the west coast; Sofala, Mozambique, Zanzibar and Mombasa on the east coast