DILLENBURG - SEGEN [DILLENBURG/LAHN & SIEGEN.]

n original antique copper-engraving from the 6th part of Latin ed. of Braun and Hogenberg's "Civitates Orbis Terrarum", published by A. Hierat in Cologne, 1617. Two panoramic views printed from one plate. With two engraved titles ("Dillenburg" and "Segen"), two ornamental title-cartouches and two figures.
This view comes from the sixth and last volume of 'Civitates Orbis Terrarum' ("Theatri Praecipuarum Totius Mundi Urbivm Liber Sextus"), published in a much smaller edition than previous volumes, and it is therefore rarer than most of Braun & Hogenberg city views.

DILLENBURG. CARTOUCHE: Dillenburg, castle and ancestral seat of the Counts of Nassau.
COMMENTARY BY BRAUN: "The Nassau Castle of Dillenburg lies on the Dill, from which it takes its name, like the whole valley through which the river flows. It is a very handsome, well-built and mighty castle with splendid rooms and apartments, and in addition it is fortified with walls, ramparts and moats."
This view from the north looking down from a high viewpoint is dominated by the well-fortified castle dating from the 13th century, which was the ancestral seat of the Counts of Nassau-Dillenburg.
William I of Orange-Nassau, who was born here in 1533, organised the Dutch Revolt against Spain from here from 1567 to 1572. Below the castle is the settlement with the church of St John. The plate documents the appearance of Dillenburg around 1590, when the little town was still unfortified, except for one section in the west; the town wall was built between 1588 and 1618.

SIEGEN. CARTOUCHE: Siegen, famous town in the County of Nassau. COMMENTARY BY BRAUN: "The mountains close by are full of iron and also some other metals, and there is therefore a large iron industry here, the iron being forged and cast and exported to all regions. And although it is a rather bleak country in which delicate fruits cannot thrive, there is no lack of those things that are essential to life, especially as regards agriculture and livestock."
In this foreshortened view of Siegen from the northwest the church of St Nicholas dominates with its height. To the right of it can be seen the Franciscan monastery, on the site of which the Lower Castle was built at the beginning of the 18th century. St Martin's church on the far right is Siegen's oldest church.
The first settlement grew up at a ford, which was important for trade traffic; the first mention of it dates from the 11th century and it was granted city rights in the 12th century. The Upper Castle, residence of the Counts of Nassau-Siegen, can be seen on the left.
The figures in peasant dress underline the city's importance as a market town, and the loaded mule is a reference to it being a centre of mining.

The "Civitates" was compiled and written by George Braun, Canon of Cologne Cathedral. Braun gathered together vast amounts of information and draft plans to produce over 500 city views/maps published in six parts between 1572 and 1617. Most of these engravings were made by Simon Novellanus and Frans Hogenberg, many after drawings by Joris Hoefnagel.
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Reference: Koeman IV, map 1077, ed. 41:1-3 (1617/18 B&H 6).Van der Krogt 4, 1077; Taschen, Braun and Hogenberg, p. 453.