In classical mythology, Pegasus was a winged horse which sprang from
the body of the Gorgon Medusa when Perseus cut her head off. He was
tamed by Bellerophon with the assistance of the goddess Athena, and featured
in a number of Bellerophon's exploits, most particularly when Bellerophon
provoked the anger of the gods by trying to ride Pegasus up to Heaven.
While the depiction of Europe in queenly form was employed by several
mapmakers (Bunting was not the first), and the allegorical theme of Europe
as a woman is found in the borders of many world maps from the late sixteenth
century onwards, the Pegasus theme is much more unusual.
Depicted above are two versions of the image, the first printed from
a woodcut, with the lettering printed from type, set into the block.
The second, from an unidentified later edition, is an engraved version
of the same image. |