Anthonie Jacobsz founded a printing and publishing business in Amsterdam in which he specialized in the production of pilot books and sea atlases. As he died at a comparatively early age most of the numerous editions of his works appeared after his death published by his sons, Jacob and Caspar, who took the name 'Lootsman' (sea pilot) to distinguish them from another printer of the name Jacobsz.

Following Blaeu and Colom, Anthonie Jacobsz was the most important compiler of sea charts in Amsterdam in the first half of the seventeenth century. In his new ZeeSpiegel issued in 1643 he increased the number of charts normally included in these books and enlarged them to folio size, which evidently proved popular.

Editions in many forms appeared until 1715 and they were copied or reprinted by Pieter Goos, Hendrick Doncker and Jan Jansson, sometimes in competition with each other but usually in cooperation with the Lootsman brothers.

Click here to see maps published by Jacobsz.

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