Duchy of Silesia with Legnica, Brzeg, Wołów, Jawor, Lubin Reilly 107
Mapmaker: Franz Joseph Johann von Reilly
Das Herzogthum Schlesien Fürstenthümer Liegnitz, Brieg, Wohlau mit den Mediat-Städten Jauer, Lüben etc. No. 107
(German for: The Duchy of Silesia – Principalities of Legnica, Brzeg, Wołów with Jawor, Lubin etc. No. 107)
This map illustrates the central western part of Silesia, focused on the historic duchies of Liegnitz (Legnica), Brieg (Brzeg), and Wohlau (Wołów) during the period of Prussian control in the late 18th century. The map is highly detailed with dense labeling of towns and villages, and emphasizes the network of settlements in the Oder River basin. It highlights mediatized towns—once sovereign but absorbed into larger principalities—such as Jauer (Jawor) and Lüben (Lubin). The decorative cartouche in the bottom right features an allegorical female figure in classical garb leaning on a stone scroll. The landscape includes major rivers and roads but little elevation detail, indicating a fertile and administratively dense area at the heart of Silesian governance.
Poland:
Liegnitz (Legnica), Brieg (Brzeg), Wohlau (Wołów), Jauer (Jawor), Lüben (Lubin), Parchwitz (Prochowice), Herrnstadt (Wąsosz), Haynau (Chojnów), Kanth (Kąty Wrocławskie), Trebnitz (Trzebnica), Leubus (Lubiąż), Ohlau (Oława), Nimptsch (Niemcza), Guhrau (Góra), Raudten (Rudna), Neumarkt (Środa Śląska), Bernstadt (Bierutów), Lissa (Wschowa), Prausnitz (Prusice), Gross Wartenberg (Syców)
Publisher: Reilly, Vienna
Dimensions: Most maps from this work measure 35 x 27.5 cm
In the late 18th Century, cartographer Franz Johann Joseph von Reilly embarked on a project to publish a multi-volume atlas of the entire world entitled Schauplatz der fünf Theile der Welt (published in several editions between zwischen 1789 und 1806). Over 800 maps of Europe were created, however the Napoleonic Wars proved to be an obstacle to completing the third part of the atlas, which was to have been dedicated to the other regions of the world. Von Reilly’s maps were sought after for their accuracy and detail.
In addition to being a mapmaker, Joseph von Reilly was was also an art dealer, author and publisher. He was born in 1766, the son of court master John Reilly, and died in 1820 in Vienna. His other major work was: Grosser Deutscher Atlas
These maps have a distinctive format, somewhat smaller than most maps of the period. Most measure 35 x 27.5 cm.
