This double portrait features two important figures in the history of Western cartography: Gerard Mercator (left) and Jodocus Hondius (right). Mercator was one of the greatest names in late 16th century cartography, with the Mercator projection of the world map named after him. Hondius was an engraver in the early 17th century who purchased Mercator’s copper map plates in 1606 and began publication of his atlas, known today as the Mercator-Hondius atlas.
