Tingis Lusitanis Tangiara [on sheet with] Tzaffin [and] Septa [and] Arzilla [and] Sala.

Five very desirable and early town-plans of Tangier, Safi, Ceuta, Asilah and Sala.
"TANGIER (TANJA) : "The engraving shows a fortified town, whereby only half the area within the walls is built up. The large building in the background may be the governor's residence. In 1471 the Portuguese attacked Asilah, whose inhabitants fled to Tangier. But that same year Tangier, too, was conquered, and remained in Portuguese hands until 1580. Tangier today belongs to Morocco and has a population of 670,000. ." . (Taschen, Braun and Hogenberg, p.123.)

SAFI : Tzaffin is a small town in Africa that is surrounded by mountains and a wall. It possesses a castle fortified with numerous turrets, many handsome houses and an extremely tall tower. This town was taken from the Moors in 1508 by King Manuel's commander-in-chief." (Taschen, Braun and Hogenberg, p.123.)

CEUTA : "The engraving shows that only a small promontory in the north of the peninsula was inhabited. Ceuta, which measures 18 sq. km, lies on a peninsula on the coast of North Africa, near the Strait of Gibraltar. There were three reasons for its conquest by Portugal in 1415: firstly, the peninsula had become a threat due to its location on the Strait of Gibraltar, where it could potentially provide the Muslims with a stepping-stone to Europe. Secondly, Ceuta was an important trading port via which goods from Africa, in particular gold, were brought to Europe. Thirdly, the peninsula offered Portugal a gateway to the unknown continent of Africa. Part of Spain since 1668, the autonomous city of Ceuta is today home to 4,000 inhabitants. .. " (Taschen, Braun and Hogenberg, p.123.)

ASILAH : "The entry on Asilah contains accurate information about the city's history and illustrates, for example, the difficult entrance to its harbor. Founded by the Romans under the name of Zilias, in the Middle Ages the town provided an important strategic base for the Portuguese, who wanted to penetrate deeper into the continent from here. They held the city between 1471 and 1541 and occupied it from 1577 to 1589. . .". (Taschen, Braun and Hogenberg, p.123.)

SALÉ : "The two settlements are depicted on either side of the river overlooking the sea. There are strikingly few houses within either city wall and no harbor facilities. Higher up the hillside rises the 44-m-high Hasan tower. Salé in Morocco is separated from its twin city of Rabat by the Bou-Regreg River. The New Sala (Sala nova) mentioned in Braun's text refers to modern-day Salé, and the Old Sala (Sala vetus) to Rabat, the political capital of Morocco.." . (Taschen, Braun and Hogenberg, p.123.)

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)