Johann Baptist Homann (1663-1724)

Homann was born in Nuremberg and remained there throughout his life. He began as an engraver and in 1702 set up his own publishing company. After publishing his first atlas in 1707 he became a member of the Berlin Academy of Sciences and later, in 1715 he achieved the position of Imperial Geographer to Emperor Charles VI.

His success as a publisher was partly due to his ability to undercut his competitors in Holland and France and the firm became the dominant map publisher in Germany in the eighteenth century. After Homann's death the business was carried on by his son until his death in 1730 whereupon the company was bequeathed to his heirs with the condition that the business continued to operate under the name 'Homann Heirs'. The firm continued publishing atlases and individual maps until the next century and exerted a great influence on German map publishing.