At the start of the 18th century Pieter van der Aa (1659 - 1733) was the leading printer in Leiden. Perhaps the most ambitious European publisher of his day, he conceived a remarkable project - to publish an illustrated atlas of the world. Utilizing available sources and prints, he produced "La Galerie Agreable du Monde," a vast set in 66 parts that contained some 3,000 plates covering customs, religion and history of the peoples of Europe, Asia, Africa and America. Upon its completion "La Galerie..." presented for the 18th century reader's pleasure and edification a stunning array of images - maps of various regions, city-views, port perspectives, landscapes, architectural plans of famous sites, landmarks, as well as numerous pictures pertaining to world history and ethnography, depictions of religious practices, social ceremonies and sumptuary clothing from around the globe. This was a veritable pinnacle of the field of "exotic geography" that flourished in Europe between 1660s and 1730s. Interestingly, van der Aa included a few plates on Georgia. The volume on "China and Grand Tartary" features two sketches on Mingrelia while the volume on Persia contains a plate with partial Georgian alphabet. 
Caption: "The clothing and feasts of the Mingrelians"
Caption: "How Mingrelians determine truth"
Caption: "The Georgian ABC"
I fine example of the hubris now commonly thought of as his[story].
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