Georg Matthäus Vischer (22 April 1628 – 13 December 1696) was an Austrian topographer, cartographer, engraver and parish priest in Leonstein (Upper Austria) and

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

. Vischer was born in Wenns ( Tyrol). Despite his clerical vocation,

geography Geography (from Ancient Greek ; combining 'Earth' and 'write', literally 'Earth writing') is the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of Earth. Geography is an all-encompassing discipline that seeks an understanding o ...

and topographical surveys were Vischer's true calling. On behalf of

nobility Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally appointed by and ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. T ...

and clergy he compiled maps and created engravings and drawings of more than 1000 cities, castles, manors, abbeys and cloisters in the regions of

Lower Austria Lower Austria ( , , abbreviated LA or NÖ) is one of the nine states of Austria, located in the northeastern corner of the country. Major cities are Amstetten, Lower Austria, Amstetten, Krems an der Donau, Wiener Neustadt and Sankt Pölten, which ...

Upper Austria Upper Austria ( ; ; ) is one of the nine States of Austria, states of Austria. Its capital is Linz. Upper Austria borders Germany and the Czech Republic, as well as the other Austrian states of Lower Austria, Styria, and Salzburg (state), Salzbur ...

, Upper Styria,

Lower Styria Styria (, ), also known as Slovenian Styria (; ) or Lower Styria (; ) to differentiate it from Austrian Styria, is a traditional region in northeastern Slovenia, comprising the southern third of the former Duchy of Styria. The population of St ...

Moravia Moravia ( ; ) is a historical region in the eastern Czech Republic, roughly encompassing its territory within the Danube River's drainage basin. It is one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia. The medieval and early ...

and

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

. In most cases Vischer's engravings are amongst the oldest preserved depictions of these structures. He is regarded as one of the most important Austrian cartographers and topographers of his time.Vischer, Georg Matthäus on aeiou.at (German)
/ref> He died, aged 68, in

Linz Linz (Pronunciation: , ; ) is the capital of Upper Austria and List of cities and towns in Austria, third-largest city in Austria. Located on the river Danube, the city is in the far north of Austria, south of the border with the Czech Repub ...

(

). File:Schloss-Kammer.JPG, Characteristic Vischer-Engraving of Kammer Castle on Lake Attersee, 1672 File:Burg Starhemberg Vischer.jpg, Copper engraving of Starhemberg Castle, 1672 File:Wilferstorf, Vischerstich faerbig.jpg, Illuminated engraving of Wilfersdorf Castle, 1674 File:Vischer - Topographia Ducatus Stiria - 035 Cilli - Celje.jpg, Celje, ''Topographia Ducatus Stiriae'', Graz 1681

Works

* ''Archiducatus Austriae Superioris Descriptio facta Anno 1667''. A Map of Upper Austria. * ''Archiducatus Austriae Inferioris Accuratissima Geographica Descriptio''. A Map of Lower Austria,

1670 * ''Topographia Austriae superioris modernae''. Copper Engravings of Upper Austrian Castles and Mansions (1674) * ''Archiducatus Austriae Inferioris Geographica et Noviter Emendata Accuratissima Descriptio'',

1697 * ''Topographia archiducatus Austriae Inferioris modernae 1672'',

1672 * ''Topographia Ducatus Stiriae'',

Graz Graz () is the capital of the Austrian Federal states of Austria, federal state of Styria and the List of cities and towns in Austria, second-largest city in Austria, after Vienna. On 1 January 2025, Graz had a population of 306,068 (343,461 inc ...

1681

References

External links

''Topographia Austriae superioris modernae: das ist Contrafee und Abbildung aller Stätt, Clöster ... des Ertz-Herzogthumbs Österreich ob der Ennß''
E-Book from the Library of the University of Vienna
Archiducatus Austriae Inferioris Accuratissima Geographica Descriptio
(Vischer Map for Lower Austria für Niederösterreich): E-Book from the Library of the University of Vienna * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Vischer, Georg Matthaus 1628 births 1696 deaths 17th-century Austrian artists Austrian cartographers Austrian topographers 17th-century engravers