Veduta of a late medieval town

[Chlodowech]

This is the final product of what was probably my longest drawing project ever. I started work on this piece during mid of july and worked on it until this evening - with lots of longer and shorter breaks, though.

The drawing shows a veduta of a fictional middle european town by the end of the 15th century. The town is clearly structured, consisting of a well-fortified and densely populated upper town, which contains among other buildings the cathedral, the bishop's palace, the university, the bishop's main storehouse and the town's parish church. Outside the gates of the upper town there's a large suburb with its own structure and another set of important buildings - the franciscan monastery, the hospital, several large tower houses of noblemen and - most importantly - the town bridge with its bridge tower. Further outside there are other large buildings, the benedictine monastery further down the river and a pilgrimage church on the other side of the river. The whole town is placed in a hilly countryside showing the typical features of the european medieval landscape.

For this drawing i used a traditional pencil (HB) and indian ink diluted with water for the shadows.

As there is a WIP thread for this drawing, i shall link it HERE.

And as i can't think of any more meaningful things to write, it's time for the drawing itself:




And now as it's done, the coloured version of the town



And once again, whoever finds missing shadows may keep them.

[Falconius]

I like it so much. It is so well realized, as was your last town. It's a mapmakers idealized version of a town, but very realistic in terms of construction layout etc. I especially appreciate the buildings built into/forming the upper wall. And also the reflections in the river. Can't wait to see the better lit version.

What is that diagonal line of things going across the river from the mill to the far bank? Is it a water break or traps or...?

Edit: Ah, I just realized the river is flowing up off the right edge and not down as I previously assumed. So the diagonal things help redirect the water to the mill somehow?

[Chlodowech]

Indeed, it is a weir to increase the water power at the mill. Most frequently they were constructed out of wood, as the one on the drawing, but some of the more advanced stone weirs have survived until today, as the 11th century one at Chester.

[MistyBeee]

Always fan of your city maps, Jakob, as you may know ! Every single detail is a pleasure for eyes

[- JO -]

Really beautiful piece ! Congratulations !

I love the fine lineart and the precision of your strokes !

[QED42]

I loved watching the WIP thread of this map, it really turned out amazing!

[Chlodowech]

Thank you very much for all the nice words about the map, Falconius, Misty, - JO - and QED42!
This is the first large-scale drawing for which i could keep my motivation up over several months, and the feedback is truly overwhelming!

Also, i updated the image to the very most absolute final version now

[Wingshaw]

I must agree with the others: a phenomenal map and a masterwork in drawing!

Wingshaw

[J.Edward]

Really top notch

[Texas Jake]

A simply glorious map. Truly inspiring work.