Jean Le Clerc (geographer)

Jean Le Clerc , including Jean IV Le Clerc , Joannes Le Clerc , Johannes Le Clerc , Johannes Clericus or Jean Leclerc , (baptized on August 16, 1560 in Paris ; † 1621 probably in Paris) was a French geographer, engraver, printer and publisher, who worked mainly in Paris.

The first four decades of his life were overshadowed by the Huguenot Wars (1562–1598). As a Huguenot, he had to leave Paris around 1588 for the sake of security and live the life of a refugee in France for several years .

Equipped with various royal privileges from Henry IV and Louis XIII. , Jean Le Clerc developed an extensive publishing activity. He worked with a number of engravers and published, among other things, portraits of current affairs and cartographies. One of his most important works was the design and publication of an atlas of France.

Family relationships

Jean Le Clerc came from a family of printers and publishers in Paris. His father was Jean III Le Clerc and Jean was therefore also called the fourth and, for further differentiation, le fils (the son) or le jeune (the boy). A younger brother of his was the printer and publisher David Le Clerc (1561-1613). Jean Le Clerc was married to Frémine Ricard (Richard). A son from this marriage, Jean V Le Clerc (15 ..– 1637), was also a printer and publisher.

Fields of activity

Burgundia Ducatu s: Map of the Duchy of Burgundy from the atlas by Maurice Bouguereau and revised by Jean Le Clerc for his atlas

From 1587 the work of Jean Le Clerc is documented. His address at the time was rue Chartière in Paris. From 1590 to 1594 he stayed as a refugee in Tours and worked there for the cartographer and publisher Maurice Bouguereau (15 ..– 1596), who at that time created the first atlas of France. (Later Jean Le Clerc was able to benefit from this work when creating his atlas.)

After that, Jean Le Clerc worked at various addresses in Paris: until 1610 in the rue Saint-Jean-de-Latran and then until 1621/24 in the rue Saint-Jacques.

Jean Le Clerc published, among other things, engravings by Jacques Granthomme (1560–1613), Pierre Firens (1580–1636) and Léonard Gaultier (1561–1635): individual sheets on which, among other things, portraits, cartographies, scenes from contemporary events (Heinrich IV.) etc. were shown. Together with the Dutch engraver and publisher Thomas de Leu (1560–1612) he published (probably 1606) an untitled collective work in which biblical scenes, allegories, calendar pages etc. were depicted. In addition to engravings by the two editors, the work, which contains 179 illustrations, also contained works by Justus Sadeler (1580–1620), Isaac Briot (1585–1670) and Nicolas Briot (1579–1646).

On December 20, 1619, Jean Le Clerc received the royal privilege for a period of six years to display and publish maps of the provinces of France and portraits of the patriarchs and princes of the Jewish people in the sequence of history: graver les cartes des provinces de France et les portraits des patriarches et princes du peuple hébreu avec l'histoire chronologique.

In 1620 Jean Le Clerc published the atlas Le Théâtre géographique du Royaume de France , in which newer and older engravings (plates) had been used in a revised form from the atlas Le Theater Francoys by Maurice Bouguereau. The works were among others by Jean Fayen (1530-1616), Jodocus Hondius (1563-1612), Salomon Rogiers (1592-1640) or Hugues Picart (1587-1664). The atlas went through several editions after Jean Le Clerc's death by his son Jean V Le Clerc. have been concerned.

literature

• Leo Bagrow : History of Cartography , Transaction Publishers, New Brunswick (USA) and London (UK) 2010, p. 256, ISBN 978-1-4128-1154-5

Web links

Commons : Jean Le Clerc  - Collection of Images

• Literature by and about Jean Le Clerc in the WorldCat bibliographic database
• Index entry for Jean Le Clerc in the Deutsche Biographie database

Remarks

1. ↑ His godparents were the engraver François Desprez (1530–1587) and the painter Jérôme Bollery (1532–1592)
2. ↑ 1624 is also given as the year of death.
3. ^ French National Library The collection of Jean Le Clerc and Thomas de Leu.