Finely coloured town plan of Constantinople, from the landmark Braun & Hogenberg atlas of cities throughout the world entitled “Civitates Orbis Terrarum” first published in 1572. The plan, initially appearing in 1572, shows a detailed view of 16th century Constantinople (modern day Istanbul) with its important locations, including the Hagia Sophia and Topkapi Palace, noted therein. This second state of the map, which includes portraits of twelve sultans along the bottom, has the right-most cameo filled in with a portrait of Murad III. A description of Constantinople appears verso in French. Other than a few minor repairs to the bottom margin well away from the image, the plan is a lovely example with wide margins in excellent condition. 33 cm x 48 cm