As maritime exploration and discovery gave way to settlement and conquest, details of the coast and the vast interior areas of the New World were gradually uncovered. Continuing surveys were motivated by desire for conquest, potential economic gain f...
It has been said that when Columbus set out on his epic voyage he didn't know where he was going, that when he arrived he didn't know where he was, and that after his return he didn't know where he had been. This satirical statement is true in ...
Maps have been used as wall decorations since ancient times. In some instances, they were painted directly on walls, while in others they were created on materials such as stone, wood, animal hides, or fabric and were then attached to walls. Large me...
Records of early voyages of exploration consisted primarily of narrative accounts and descriptions contained in ships' logs, supplemented by hand-drawn charts of the waters, navigational landmarks and hazards, and coastal features. Sketches of birds,...
As increasing geographic detail filled the previously empty spaces on maps, opportunities for incorporating decorative elements into the map itself diminished correspondingly. It was inevitable that artistically inclined mapmakers would look to the b...
While maps are essentially scientific documents, their acceptability is enhanced if they are pleasing to the eye. In addition to skillful engraving, which alone is quite beautiful, decorative elements may be added to improve the overall visual impact...
Then with colours and golde shall you garnyshe and beautifie the Cities, Compasses, Shyppes, and other parts of the Carde. Then shall you set forth the coastes with greene, . . . and make them fayre to syght with a Utile saffron . . . . Richard Eden,...
Some, to beautify their Halls, Parlors, Chambers, Galeries, Studies, or Libraries . . . liketh, loveth, getteth, and useth, Maps, Charts and Geographicall Globes. John Dee (about 1570)Maps are graphic representations or images of the earth or he...
From the earliest times mankind has been fascinated by monsters — creatures of bizarre, grotesque, or frightful configuration. Monsters were variously regarded as supernatural beings, creations of a wise and all-powerful god, omens signifying divin...
Atlas, a central figure in Greek mythology, was a Titan, one of the primeval deities who waged a losing war against Zeus and the Olympian gods. The defeated Atlas was condemned to support the heavens on his head and shoulders forevermore. Over time, ...
