The beauty of old maps 🧵
1. Panama Canal: The Kiss of the Oceans (1923 postcard)
1. Panama Canal: The Kiss of the Oceans (1923 postcard)
2. Likely crafted in Florence, this globe made from two ostrich eggs may be the first known globe depicting the New World.
Dating back to the early 1500s, it features the inscription HC SVNT DRACONES ("Here are the Dragons"), positioned above the southeastern coast of Asia.
Dating back to the early 1500s, it features the inscription HC SVNT DRACONES ("Here are the Dragons"), positioned above the southeastern coast of Asia.
3. An arctic continent is depicted on the Gerardus Mercator map of 1595.
On several ancient maps, a land called Hyperborea is often shown as an Arctic continent and described as "Terra Septemtrionalis Incognita" (Unknown Northern Land).
On several ancient maps, a land called Hyperborea is often shown as an Arctic continent and described as "Terra Septemtrionalis Incognita" (Unknown Northern Land).
4. Babylonian Map of the World
The Imago Mundi, the oldest known world map, is a clay tablet from ancient Babylon that offers a schematic representation of the world.
Centered on the Euphrates River and Babylon itself, this remarkable artifact dates back to the 9th century BC.
The Imago Mundi, the oldest known world map, is a clay tablet from ancient Babylon that offers a schematic representation of the world.
Centered on the Euphrates River and Babylon itself, this remarkable artifact dates back to the 9th century BC.
5. Leonardo da Vinci made a “satellite” map of the Italian city of Imola in 1502.
Comparing it to a modern Google Earth image of the same city is nothing short of surreal.
Comparing it to a modern Google Earth image of the same city is nothing short of surreal.
6. The Carta Marina (1539)
A masterpiece of Scandinavian cartography, Olaus Magnus filled this map with sea monsters, Viking ships, and polar bears.
A masterpiece of Scandinavian cartography, Olaus Magnus filled this map with sea monsters, Viking ships, and polar bears.
7. The Ebstorf Map (13th century)
A lost medieval map, destroyed during the Allied bombing of Hanover in World War II.
It depicted Jesus Christ’s body superimposed on the world, with his head at the top, hands at the edges, and feet at the bottom.
A lost medieval map, destroyed during the Allied bombing of Hanover in World War II.
It depicted Jesus Christ’s body superimposed on the world, with his head at the top, hands at the edges, and feet at the bottom.
8. Map of the oldest universities in the world that are still open:
1) Ez-Zitouna University in Tunisia (737)
2) Al-Qarawiyyin University in Morocco (859)
3) Al-Azhar University in Egypt (972)
4) University of Bologna in Italy (1088)
5) University of Oxford in England (1096)
1) Ez-Zitouna University in Tunisia (737)
2) Al-Qarawiyyin University in Morocco (859)
3) Al-Azhar University in Egypt (972)
4) University of Bologna in Italy (1088)
5) University of Oxford in England (1096)
9. Sebastian Münster's 1540 map of the New World
10. A 19th century Ottoman map of the Americas
11. Pietro Vesconte's world map, 1321
12. Nicolaus Germanus's 1467 Latin world map according to Ptolemy's 2nd projection, the first known to the west.
13. Gleason's new standard map of the world, 1892
14. An 1853 relief map of Italy with statistical tables
15. The Piri Reis Map (1513)
Drawn by the Ottoman admiral Piri Reis, this map is famous for its shockingly accurate depiction of South America.
Drawn by the Ottoman admiral Piri Reis, this map is famous for its shockingly accurate depiction of South America.
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One more: The Hereford Mappa Mundi (c. 1300)
Measuring 1.58 x 1.33 meters (5'1” by 4'3”), this is the largest medieval world map still in existence.
It places Jerusalem at the center, depicting heaven, hell and the path to salvation alongside real geography.
Measuring 1.58 x 1.33 meters (5'1” by 4'3”), this is the largest medieval world map still in existence.
It places Jerusalem at the center, depicting heaven, hell and the path to salvation alongside real geography.
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