Kaart van het dijkgraafschap van de Vier Noorder Koggen - Hendrik de Leth

A detailed four-part eighteenth-century map of the Vier Noorder Koggen district in North Holland, featuring technical land divisions and allegorical imagery.

This four-part map by Hendrik de Leth depicts the dijkgraafschap, or dike reeve district, of the Vier Noorder Koggen in North Holland. Produced during the eighteenth century, the work reflects the Dutch preoccupation with water management and land reclamation. The map provides a technical overview of the polder system, showing the division of land, dikes, and waterways that defined the region.

The composition is divided into four distinct quadrants. Three sections focus on the topographical layout of the district, marked with precise lines indicating boundaries and infrastructure. The fourth section, located in the bottom right, features an allegorical scene. This vignette depicts figures engaged in agricultural labour alongside a cow, with a turbulent sea scene in the background. This inclusion of pastoral imagery serves to connect the technical nature of the map with the economic reality of the region, which relied heavily on dairy farming and land protection against the encroaching sea.

Hendrik de Leth was a prominent mapmaker and publisher based in Amsterdam. His work often combined geographical accuracy with the decorative conventions of the period, such as the inclusion of heraldic shields at the top of the map. These coats of arms represent the local administrative bodies responsible for the maintenance of the dikes. The engraving technique allows for fine detail, ensuring that the names of the various land parcels and administrative divisions remain legible. This print offers a look into the administrative and physical structure of the Dutch countryside during a period of significant agricultural development. It is a document of both cartographic history and the social organisation of the North Holland region.