Research
During his fellowship Dresscher will write a publication on Cornelis Claesz. Cornelis Claesz (ca. 1547-1609) was a printer, publisher and book dealer who worked in Amsterdam. He mainly focussed on maps and travel descriptions and has published an impressive amount of works in these genres. Even though Claesz is not very well known, his work forms an important link in the history of Dutch cartography, navigation and travel literature. He was, for instance, the first to publish the works of Linschoten and his work also had a large influence on the start of the career of Willem Blaeu. His maps had the name of being very accurate and adjusted to the latest discoveries.
The publication will give an overview of the cartographic and related material of Claesz to introduce his important role to a larger public. An in-depth exploration of his daily practice and his person of Claesz himself will also be undertaken to bring his way of working and personality to the foreground.
Fellow
Thomas Dresscher is a freelance historian with the specialisations Maritime and Colonial History. After his education at the universities of Groningen, Utrecht and Galway he started as an independent researcher. Through the years he has worked on many projects and publications for – amongst others – the National Archives of the Netherlands and the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands. Publications include Het Grote VOC Boek, Het Grote Kaartenboek and the digital publication of the Grote Atlas of the VOC/WIC series. He is also involved with the Atlas of Mutual Heritage as a team member.