The Council of Mallorca recovers a jewel of medieval Mallorcan cartography

The document, dated 1447 and considered one of the most valuable pieces of medieval Mallorcan cartography, will become part of the public heritage collection and may be visited from June onwards at the Museu de Mallorca.

The president of the Council of Mallorca, Llorenç Galmés, and the vice president and councillor for Culture and Heritage, Antònia Roca, have formalised the acquisition of Pere Rossell’s portolan chart at Sotheby’s in London. This chart, dated 1447, is an exceptional piece of medieval cartography that now becomes part of the island’s public heritage. The operation marks the recovery of one of the most significant works of the Mallorcan Cartographic School.

The chart, signed by the Mallorcan cartographer Pere Rossell, also known as Petrus Roselli, is considered the oldest known work by the author and one of the most valuable testimonies to the cartographic tradition developed in Mallorca between the 13th and 15th centuries.

The delegation from the island institution was received by David Goldthorpe, Sotheby’s Head of Books and Manuscripts for Europe and the Middle East, who stated: “We could not have wished for a better destination for this beautiful portolan chart. Preserved in a private collection for more than four decades by the distinguished bibliophiles Cindy and Jay Pritzker, it is now making its way back to Mallorca, more than five hundred years after its creation, where it will be displayed to the public and enjoyed by generations to come.”

The president of the Council of Mallorca highlighted that “this purchase represents a milestone for the island and for the preservation of our heritage,” and stressed that “we are recovering a key piece of our history that reinforces Mallorca’s role as a benchmark in medieval cartography.” He also added that “this is a strategic investment to ensure that this legacy remains within reach of the public and future generations.”

For her part, the vice president of the Council of Mallorca pointed out that “Pere Rossell’s portolan chart is a true jewel that reflects the talent, knowledge and international projection of medieval Mallorca,” and emphasised that “its incorporation into the public heritage collection will make it possible not only to preserve it, but also to promote it from an educational and cultural perspective.”

The document, produced on vellum and written in Latin and Catalan, represents the Mediterranean world with great precision and includes hundreds of place names written in Gothic calligraphy in black and red ink. It is a large illuminated portolan chart that served as an essential tool for navigation in the Middle Ages.

The acquisition was carried out after the piece was put up for international auction, which the island institution considered a unique opportunity to recover an asset of extraordinary historical and cultural value for Mallorca.

As part of this initiative, the Council of Mallorca has announced that the portolan chart will go on display from June at the Museu de Mallorca, where the public will be able to view this unique piece at close quarters and understand its importance within the history and identity of the island.