Rare Maps Of The World

While history texts may recount historical events that molded the globe, we may observe a physical shaping when we look at historic maps.

We may sometimes get a glimpse of a long-ago location. At other times, we experience the world through the eyes of individuals who have yet to realize the Earth's true extent. Others come from those who are willing to take risks and forge their own paths.

We gathered rare maps to offer you a historical tour of how far we've progressed.

Sparta (400 B.C.) Was A City-State In Ancient Greece

J.D. Barbie du Bocage drew this map in 1817, based on historical texts, to try to depict what Sparta could have looked like in the 400s B.C., when it was a rival city-state to Athens.

The Spartans were noted for enrolling boys as early as seven years old in the Agoge program, which provided them with military training.

Lacedaemon, Sparta's Greek name, was a city in southern Greece.

1407 Global Map

Ptolemy, a geographer in Ancient Rome, spent his life mapping the country and the stars (100-178).

Ptolemy's World Map was replicated in 1407 by "Geographia," a translation of his Greek works into Latin.

 

1154 Map Of The World

This global map was drawn in 1154 by Moroccan geographer Muhammad al-Idrisi.

"Entertainment for Those Wanting to Discover the World" was the title of a collection of works that included it. The book was known as "The Book of Roger," and his maps were known as Tabula Rogeriana.

1579 USA

Abraham Ortelius is credited with inventing the contemporary atlas (Theatre of the World). He described the "Amerikas" of 1579 in this book.

Ortelius' study was the first to mention that the continents fit together like a jigsaw puzzle, implying that continental drift had already begun.

1570 Global Map

Ortelius' global map, which was included in his Theatre of the World.

The Indian Ocean And The Middle East 1596

Jan Huyghen van Linschoten, a Dutch adventurer who traveled between Europe and India, kept track of trade routes and made this map as part of his Itinerario collection of maps.

The book was dubbed "The Key to the East" because of its meticulous information, and it helped the Dutch East India Company prosper.

1606 Virginia

Captain John Smith, who drew a number of maps for the new colony, gave the explanation for this map of Virginia.

Smith founded Jamestown, Virginia, as a colonial governor, however he is more remembered today for his connection with Pocahontas and his work with Native Americans.

1730 Globe Map

George Matthaus Seutter was a German cartographer whose work was praised, earning him the title of royal cartographer at the court of Holy Roman Emperor and Austrian Habsburg King Charles VI.

During his prime, he produced this double-hemisphere map.

1675 Map Of The Heavens

The double hemisphere chart known as Ludovico Vlasblom was constructed by Dutch doctor and mathematician Louis Vlasblom, who charted the stars.

Five years later, it was included in the book "Boeck zee-Kaardt."

Hemisphere Of The West 1520

Joannes Schöner produced this map of the Western Hemisphere in 1520, after a flurry of voyages in the 1400s.

Schöner, a German, made wooden globes, one of which dates from 1515 and is still in use today.

Mediterranean 1570

The Mediterranean Sea is one of the most significant and historic bodies of water in the establishment of Western Civilization, connecting Europe, Africa, Asia, and the Middle East.

The Eastern Mediterranean Sea in 1570, as seen on this map.