The 1575 view of Alexandria, Egypt, by Georg Braun and Frans Hogenberg, is a striking example of sixteenth-century European city cartography, produced for the celebrated atlas Civitates Orbis Terrarum. Combining geographic observation with pictorial storytelling, the view presents Alexandria as a historic Mediterranean port shaped by antiquity, commerce, and Islamic urban life.
Rendered from an elevated bird’s-eye perspective, the city is shown stretched between the Mediterranean Sea and Lake Mareotis, emphasizing Alexandria’s role as a maritime gateway between Europe, North Africa, and the eastern Mediterranean. The harbor dominates the foreground, animated with sailing vessels that underline the city’s commercial importance. Defensive walls and towers encircle the urban core, reflecting both its strategic vulnerability and long-standing military significance.
Prominent landmarks are carefully highlighted. The ruins and legendary memory of the Pharos of Alexandria, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, are evoked through the depiction of a lighthouse structure guarding the harbor entrance. Mosques, minarets, and domed buildings rise above the dense fabric of houses, conveying the Islamic character of the city under Ottoman rule. Streets are implied rather than mapped, reinforcing the image’s narrative and descriptive function rather than strict spatial accuracy.
Braun and Hogenberg enrich the scene with human figures in the foreground, dressed in local and European attire. These figures serve both as decorative elements and ethnographic references, offering contemporary viewers a sense of cultural encounter and travel. The engraved title and descriptive text frame the city as a place of historical grandeur and ongoing relevance.
Overall, the map is both a geographic representation and a cultural portrait. It reflects early modern Europe’s fascination with Alexandria as a city of ancient learning, strategic power, and enduring Mediterranean connectivity.
