Aa, Peter Vander

[also known as Pieter van der Aa]

, an eminent bookseller, who began business at Leyden about the year 1682, and devoted his attention principally to geographical works and the construction of maps. A catalogue appeared at Amsterdam in 1729 of his publications, which are very numerous. Those in highest esteem are: 1. “A collection of Travels in France, Italy, England, Holland, and Russia,” Leyden, 1706, 30 vols. 12mo. 2. “A collection of Voyages in the two Indies,” Leyden, 1706, 8 vols. fol.; another edition, 29 vols. 8 vo, 1707-1710. This consists chiefly of an abridgment of De Bry’s collection, with some additions. 3. “A collection of Voyages in the Indies by the Portuguese, the English, the French, and the Italians,” 4 vols. fol. Leyden. These three works are in Dutch. 4. An “Atlas of two hundred Maps,” not in much estimation. 5. “A Gallery of the World,” containing an immense quantity of maps, topographical and historical plates, but without letter-press, in 66 vols. fol. which are usually bound in 35. He also continued Graevius’ “Thesaurus,” or, an account of the modern Italian writers, with the “Thesaurus Antiquitatum Siciliæ.” He died about 1730.¹