Last year, we stopped our Auction/Buy-or-Bid activities. Learn more [+]

In 2025, we will sell rare antique maps, atlases, and prints in our BuyNow Gallery and send a weekly stock update with exclusive offers and newly added items. Join our Mailing List >>>


Swaen BuyNow GALLERY CATALOG

Our BuyNow-catalog offers immediate sale items, and no commission is charged. The catalog includes old maps of the World - America - Asia - Europe - Africa - Medieval Manuscripts - Nuremberg Chronicle - Prints - Posters, atlases, globes, etc.
All items are available for immediate sale, and we will provide a certificate of authenticity.

VIRTUAL COLLECTION
With Virtual Collection, you can save and collect your favorite items in one place by pressing the Virtual Collection Virtual Collection icon!
Save any of the 30.000+ maps, prints or Medieval manuscripts in our BuyNow Catalog OR Catalog Archive to build your own Virtual Collection.


about us
About Paulus Swaen

The firm was founded by Pierre Joppen (to the left) in 1978 in the Netherlands and in 1996 we moved to Florida, where the Internet auction was added that year. >>>>
You can buy items in our online BuyNow catalog and see what is currently available.

newsletter
Join our Newsletter

Be the first to get notified about our weekly added new listings, newsletters, and special offers.

The Map Bar

Every Tuesday 1PM EST or 19.00 Amsterdam, meet in The Map Bar at Meta4Maps.com, a metaverse meeting point with plenty of antique maps on the wall to have a chat with other map enthusiasts.

Recent Updates
Recent Acquisitions
You can always check our new acquisitions page to see what we’ve recently added. Let's look at some rare maps, atlases, and wall maps we recently acquired. Which is your favorite?

Sign up for our newsletter and be the first to be notified of new acquisitions and get exclusive offers.

mapmakers
Mapmakers and explorers

Sometimes, maps become more famous than their makers. Many cartographers only become famous after they’ve created a masterpiece.
Still, others make a famous map, then disappear from history forever.

The Mapping of...
The Mapping of...

We have created some short articles about mapping of Arabia, Australia, Canada, China, Hungary, Invasion of Minorca, Japan, Korea, Malta, Mer de l'Ouest, Northwest Passage, Poland, Russia, South East Asia, Taiwan and Ukraine.

Title pages
The Curated Collection

This is a collection of carefully selected old and rare maps, which are all graded with 8-10 stars in the HiBCoR grading system
This carefully selected list of old and rare maps, atlas and books have all in common that they are extraordinary items that make a difference to any collection.

catalog archive
Catalog Archive

Paulus Swaen maintains an archive of sold items, including HR images. Most map images are not restricted by copyright and can be used freely, as most are in the public domain. These historically achieved prices can help understand the pricing development of old maps and help with placing bids.


Articles about maps
Read our short articles

If you are interested in the backgrounds of antique maps, prints, mapmakers, etc. then you should read our short but informative articles >>>>
Or other subjects such as posters, old prints, Nuremberg Chronicle, optical prints, medieval manuscripts, trading companies, etc.



Recently Viewed

[Lot of 10 leaves of Bohemia, Moravia]

Ten text leaves illustrated with wood block prints relating to Bohemia and Moravia. From the 1552 Latin text edition of Münster's Cosmographia, which is a short and com...

$26 / ≈ €23
Maker / Publisher: MÜNSTER, S.
Place & Date: Basel, 1552
Selling price: $26
Sold in 2022

 


Map of the Districts and Countries of Great Japan

This is a spectacular, large format folding map of Japan by Takashiba Ei'San'Yu, dated 1849. The map presents the primary Japanese islands of Kyushu, Honshu, Shikoku and ...

Maker / Publisher: Ei'San'Yu, Takashiba
Place & Date: Japan, 1849
Selling price: $800
Sold in 2023

 


Plan de la Rade d'Ascombrera. . .

An attractive chart centered on Cartagena in Spain. With scale and large compass-rose. Dated 1730, with the privilege of the King. From : Recueil des Plusieurs plans des ...

$300 / ≈ €264
Maker / Publisher: MICHELOT, H. / BREMOND, L.
Place & Date: Marseille, 1730

 


AU CAFÉ D'AGUESSEAU. En attendant l'audience, Démosthène déjeune aux frais du client, le bifteck aux pommes pousse à l'éloquence...

Third state (of 3), with text, numbered 23. From "Les Gens de Justice", published " Chez Auber & Cie, Pl. de la Bourse,29". Text below image : AT ...

$500 / ≈ €440
Maker / Publisher: DAUMIER, H.
Place & Date: Paris, 1848