Kosice,Slovakia,- Cassovia superioris Hungariae civitas primaria.

RARE only included in part VI of his town book. Panoramic town-view of Kosice, Slovakia by G. Hoefnagel and son, 1617.Costumes.

COMMENTARY BY BRAUN: "Kosice is a large and well-fortified city in the Kingdom of Hungary. Situated on the borders to Transylvania on the Hernà¡d, the city is in a good position both for protecting the country and for craft trades and commerce. It is one of the most important strongholds in the whole kingdom and capable of soundly defeating even the most powerful enemy. Although the city has suffered many battles and dangers, it has nonetheless always remained loyal to the most praiseworthy imperial house of Austria, even at the time when Stephen Bocskay seized not only Transylvania but also large parts of Hungary and was allowed to keep them with the permission of the Emperor."

Kosice is shown from the south on a hill above a suburb. The mighty cathedral of St Elizabeth rises up in the middle of the city. At the beginning of the 13th century, German colonists founded a commercial center here, beside a Slavic settlement. In 1290 Kosice was one of the first towns in the Kingdom of Hungary to be granted a municipal charter. As an important trade center, the city developed into the second-largest Hungarian city after Buda and prospered in the 14th/15th centuries. In 1657 the city received its own university. The Turkish Wars as well as internal unrest led to decline so that Kosice had scarcely any economic importance in the 18th century. After the First World War, the city passed to the newly founded state of Czechoslovakia and became part of the Slovak Republic in 1993. With a population of around 235,000 it is the second-largest city in the country. (Taschen)

The Civitates Orbis Terrarum, or the "Braun & Hogenberg", is a six-volume town atlas and the greatest book of town views and plans ever published: 363 engravings, sometimes beautifully colored. It was one of the best-selling works in the last quarter of the 16th century. Georg Braun wrote the text accompanying the plans and views on the verso. A large number of the plates were engraved after the original drawings of Joris Hoefnagel (1542-1600), who was a professional artist.
The first volume was published in Latin in 1572, the sixth volume in 1617. Frans Hogenberg created the tables for volumes I through IV, and Simon van den Neuwel created those for volumes V and VI. Other contributors were cartographer Daniel Freese, and Heinrich Rantzau. Works by Jacob van Deventer, Sebastian Münster, and Johannes Stumpf were also used. Translations appeared in German and French.

Reference: Taschen, Braun and Hogenberg, p.477.