Frankfurt. Plan-Prospekt.

Fine plan of Frankfurt in full contemporary colour, with a panoramic view of the city and the river Main.

Seutter's plan celebrates Frankfurt as an Imperial Free City under the Holy Roman Empire, famed for its status as a flourishing trading city. Its trading success is suggested by Frankfurt am Main's row of busy ports and the large docked ship entering Sachsenhausen across the river. It is also overtly signalled by the right hand panel of the prospect showing Hermes, the Greek god of trade and commerce, showering an allegorical depiction of the city with riches. Meanwhile Frankfurt's might is emphasised by the city walls and fortifications, and by the left hand panel of the prospect, depicting the German imperial eagle hovering commandingly above troops. The plan's alphabetical key identifies the city's key sites, the majority of which are churches. Meanwhile the city's outskirts are designated as rich agricultural land, in the plan itself and central panel of the prospect.
Seutter (1647-1756) was one of the most important and prolific German map publishers of the 18th century. He was apprenticed in Nuremberg to Johann Bapist Homann, the leading German cartographic publisher of the period. Having finished his training he left to establish his own independent cartographic publishing house in Augsburg. By 1732 Seutter was one of the most celebrated publishers of his time and was honored by the German Emperor Charles VI with the title of 'Imperial Geographer'.