A map of the Region of Volscorum within Latium, the region of central western Italy where Rome was founded, from Jesuit Athanasius Kircher's book, Latium, id est, nova et parallela Latii tum veteris tum novi descriptio, published in 1671 by Johannes Janssonius van Waesberge (fl. 1642-1681) and Elizaeus Weyerstraten. The book followed a long tradition of chorography, but unlike the works of his predecessors, which tended to be on the whole of Italy, Kircher's book focused on Latium itself. Through his narrow focus, Kircher hoped to use the physical remains of ancient Latium to teach the reality of human mutability and transience.
The map covers the coastal region between the cities Fiumicino and Gaeta to the east and the Lepini Mountains to the west. Man-made feats of engineering such as aquaducts and canals are pictorially represented. In the lower right corner is a title cartouche decorated with mythical figures. Ships and sea monsters are dot the sea.
Reference: Harry B. Evans. Exploring the Kingdom of Saturn: Kircher's Latium and Its Legacy. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 2012.
