The island of Hven lies off the coast of Denmark. 

With income as feudal lord of Hven, Tycho Brahe built a castle of the stars, Uraniborg, in the center of the island. At Uraniborg, Tycho built an interdisciplinary research institute, welcoming scholars from across Europe to collaborate in the advancement of astronomy, alchemy and medicine. 

Medical research depended upon the tending of orchards and herb gardens. 

Alchemical work required furnaces, which at Uraniborg were tended night and day in round subterranean laboratories. 

Astronomy required precision instruments, housed on the nearby grounds and behind removable panels on the castle roof.

Aside from the portrait, these large framed prints are original leaves from one of the editions of Johann Blaeu, Le grand atlas; ou, Cosmographie blaviane (first published in Amsterdam, 1663).