Lugdunum. (Lyon)

Very desirable and early town-views of Lyon.

Lyons's position between the Saône and the Rhône, so advantageous in terms of transportation, is impressively conveyed in this plan view from a steep bird's-eye perspective. The city's oldest surviving church, the Romanesque Benedictine abbey of Saint-Martin-d'Ainay, consecrated in 1107, is visible in the center of the city, together with the part Romanesque, part Gothic cathedral of Saint-Jean. Through its close trade links with Italy, but also as a consequence of the Italian Wars (1494-1559), Lyons became a center of humanism and printing in the late 15th and early 16th century. In the 16th century the city's proximity to Geneva resulted in increased exposure to Protestant ideas, and in 1562-1563 Lyons was even taken by Protestants. In 1536 Francis I awarded Lyons the monopoly for weaving gold, silver and silk textiles and thereby fuelled the growth of the silk industry that from the 16th century onwards would make Lyons France's first "industrial town". More than half the population of Lyons earned their living from silk. Faience production also increased from 1512. " (Taschen, Braun and Hogenberg, p.64.)

From volume one of the greatest publication in this genre!. 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.
Read more about the Civitates Orbis.

Reference: Koeman (1967-70) B & H 1-5, NMM III, i, 459 (1573-1618 ed.), Introduction', in: G. Braun and F. Hogenberg, Civitates orbis terrarum (Amsterdam: 1965). (2)