Leo Belgicus - Famiano Strada, 1684. (Antique Map In Color)
This map turns the Low Countries into a walking lion. The coastline of the Netherlands forms the lion’s back, the tail curls out over the sea, and the paws rest across what is now Belgium, Luxembourg and part of northern France. It is printed on warm parchment style paper, so it feels like a small, strong piece of 17th century history and works well in a study or library next to books, dark wood and brass.
 
About this map print
This print is based on Famiano Strada’s Leo Belgicus, a map that shows the 17 provinces of the Low Countries in the shape of a lion. Strada was a Jesuit historian whose book De Bello Belgico told the story of the Dutch Revolt, and different versions of this lion map were engraved for the title pages of his Latin editions in the mid and late seventeenth century.
 
The lion faces to the right. Its head is in the north, its chest and front paws rest on the central provinces, and its hind legs reach down into the southern territories. The Dutch coastline draws the line of the back, and the River Rhine runs roughly along the throat. In the North Sea you can see sailing ships and sometimes a sea creature near the lion’s tail, a very typical touch for maps of this period.
 
Leo Belgicus was more than a clever shape. It helped people see the 17 provinces as one unit and used the lion, a symbol already found in many local coats of arms, as a simple picture of shared identity. This kind of symbolic map sits in the same tradition as Europa Regina, where Europe is drawn as a queen, and later figurative maps that turn whole regions into a single memorable figure.
 
Craft & finish
This antique map print is made on hand processed paper, with subtle gold added by hand and a beeswax finish so it feels close to real parchment when you hold it. The surface catches the light softly, but colors can look a little different from screen to screen.
 
You can find more pieces like this in our Antique Maps collection.