El cartógrafo a bordo: registros de testigos presenciales en las cartas náuticas tempranas

In this article I examine early nautical charts and isolarii, or island books illustrated with maps, for evidence that indicates the maps were made on the basis of first-hand observation by the cartographer. There are very few claims on early nautical charts that the charts were created based on the cartographers’ own observations. I suggest that these claims are rare because chart-making was more an artistic enterprise than as a medium for recording discoveries. This conception of nautical charts changed with the advent of the Age of Discoveries, and claims that charts were made based on eyewitness information become more common. The case with isolarii is very different, although the maps in isolarii derive from the nautical chart tradition. Some of the creators of isolarii claim that their works were based on first-hand experience, but not always truthfully. Other authors neither sailed among the islands they describe nor claim to have visited them.En este artículo examino las cartas náuticas tempranas y los islarios, o libros sobre islas ilustrados con mapas, en busca de evidencia que indique que los mapas se hicieron en base a la observación de primera mano por parte del cartógrafo. Hay muy pocas afirmaciones en las cartas náuticas tempranas de que las cartas se crearon en base a las propias observaciones de los cartógrafos. Sugiero que estas afirmaciones son raras porque la creación de las cartas náuticas fue más una empresa artística que un medio para registrar descubrimientos. Esta concepción de las cartas náuticas cambió con el advenimiento de la Era de los Descubrimientos, y las afirmaciones de que las cartas se hicieron en base a información de testigos oculares se vuelven más comunes. El caso de los islarios es muy diferente, aunque los mapas en los islarios derivan de la tradición de las cartas náuticas. Algunos creadores de islarios afirman que crearon sus libros a partir de la observación de primera mano, pero no siempre con la verdad. Otros autores no navegaron entre las islas que describen ni afirman haberlas visitado

Martin Waldseemüller’s 'Carta marina' of 1516

This open access book presents the first detailed study of one of the most important masterpieces of Renaissance cartography, Martin Waldseemüller’s Carta marina of 1516. By transcribing, translating into English, and detailing the sources of all of the descriptive texts on the map, as well as the sources of many of the images, the book makes the map available to scholars in a wholly unprecedented way. In addition, the book provides revealing insights into how Waldseemüller went about making the map -- information that can’t be found in any other source. The Carta marina is the result of Waldseemüller’s radical re-evaluation of what a world map should be; he essentially started from scratch when he created it, rejecting the Ptolemaic model and other sources he had used in creating his 1507 map, and added more descriptive texts and a wealth of illustrations. Given its content, the book offers an essential reference work not only on this map, but also for anyone working in sixteenth-century European cartography

An addition to the corpus of maps by José Joaquim da Rocha (c. 1740-1807)

The purpose of this short article is simple: to attribute an anonymous manuscript map of the Colonia de Sacramento, a territory north of the río de la Plata, that had been contended between the Spanish and Portuguese empires, kept in the Biblioteca Pública Municipal do Porto, to the cartographer José Joaquim da Rocha (c. 1740-1807). The argument will be based on iconographic evidence, as no record about the map’s history is available. The analysis of the map will shed light on Rocha’s cartographic practices, and the attribution of the map to Rocha will shed new light on his career.O propósito deste breve texto é simples: atribuir um mapa manuscrito anônimo da Colônia do Sacramento – um território ao norte do rio da Prata, que foi disputado entre os impérios Espanhol e Português –, mantido na Biblioteca Pública Municipal do Porto, ao cartógrafo José Joaquim da Rocha (c. 1740-1807). Tal argumento está baseado em evidências iconográficas, já que não há nenhum registro disponível sobre a história do mapa. A análise do mapa esclarecerá sobre as práticas cartográficas de Rocha e a atribuição do mapa a ele lançará nova luz sobre sua carreira.El propósito de este breve texto es simple: el de atribuir un mapa manuscrito anónimo de Colonia del Sacramento —un territorio al norte del río de la Plata que había sido disputado entre los imperios español y portugués—, resguardado en la Biblioteca Pública Municipal de Porto, al cartógrafo José Joaquim da Rocha (c. 1740-1807). El argumento se basa en evidencia iconográfica, dado que ningún registro acerca de la historia de este mapa se encuentra disponible. El análisis y atribución del mapa arrojan luz acerca de la carrera y de las prácticas cartográficas de da Rocha.Le but de ce court article est simple: attribuer au cartographe José Joaquim da Rocha (vers 1740-1807) une carte manuscrite anonyme de Colonia de Sacramento --un territoire au nord du río de la Plata qui fut à l'origine de disputes entre les empires espagnol et portugais-- aujourd'hui conservée à la Biblioteca Pública Municipal do Porto. Cette proposition se base sur des preuves iconographiques, car aucune trace de l’histoire de la carte n’est disponible. L’analyse de la carte éclaire les pratiques cartographiques de Rocha et l’attribution de la carte à Rocha contribue à jeter un éclairage nouveau sur sa carrière

Van Duzer, Chet, Frames that Speak: Cartouches on Early Modern Maps

Ova raskošno ilustrirana knjiga prvo je sustavno istraživanje kartografskih kartuša, ukrašenih okvira koji okružuju naslov ili drugi tekst ili slike na starim kartama.This lavishly illustrated book is the first systematic exploration of cartographic cartouches, the decorated frames that surround the title, or other text or imagery, on historic maps

Van Duzer, Chet, Frames that Speak: Cartouches on Early Modern Maps

Ova raskošno ilustrirana knjiga prvo je sustavno istraživanje kartografskih kartuša, ukrašenih okvira koji okružuju naslov ili drugi tekst ili slike na starim kartama.This lavishly illustrated book is the first systematic exploration of cartographic cartouches, the decorated frames that surround the title, or other text or imagery, on historic maps

Changing Ideas about the Oceans Reflected in the World Maps of Martin Waldseemüller

The article opens with a brief look at evidence that in classical antiquity and the Middle Ages the ocean was seen as a place of great danger. It then proceeds to look at changes in ideas about the ocean in the early modern period through world maps made by Martin Waldseemüller in 1507 and 1516. His earlier map has a number of texts about sea monsters, suggesting that the cartographer still saw the ocean as dangerous, while his later map has an image of King Manuel of Portugal riding a sea monster to indicate Portugal's control of the sea route around Africa to Asia, indicating that the ocean was thought of rather as a space that humans could master, and across which trade could be conducted