Eggplant.place

1y

My method for creating fictional world maps:
1) go for a walk after rain
2) take photos of drying spots on the sidewalk
3) draw over them ✨

#worldbuilding #worldbuildingart #cartography #fictionalmaps

Photo I took of the surface of a wet sidewalk that has dry spots in it and a second image that's the same photo but with the edges of the spots outlined.

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1y

Flemish cartogapher Abraham Ortelius was born #OTD in 1527.

He is best known for his work in creating the first modern atlas, titled "Theatrum Orbis Terrarum" (1570). Before "Theatrum Orbis Terrarum," maps were typically scattered in various separate works. He collected & organized them into a single comprehensive volume, which proved to be a groundbreaking achievement in the history of cartography. His atlas included 53 maps, each depicting a different region of the world.

#books #cartography

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Maris Pacifici by Abraham Ortelius. This map was published in 1589 in his Theatrum Orbis Terrarum. It was not only the first printed map of the Pacific, but it also showed the Americas for the first time.

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1y

If you're into map making geekery, this is a great Ted Talk about the biggest mistakes cartographers have made about the Earth's geography.

#cartography #maps

https://www.ted.com/talks/kayla_wolf_the_biggest_mistakes_in_mapmaking_history?language=en

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1y

#OTD in 1570.

Cartographer Abraham Ortelius issues Theatrum Orbis Terrarum, the first modern atlas.

Three Latin editions of this (besides a Dutch, a French and a German edition) appeared before the end of 1572; 25 editions came out before Ortelius' death in 1598; and several others were published subsequently, for the atlas continued to be in demand till about 1612. It is often considered as the official beginning of the Golden Age of Netherlandish cartography (~1570s–1670s).

#cartography

Ortelius World Map Typvs Orbis Terrarvm, 1570.

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1y

Dutch physician, mathematician, cartographer Gemma Frisius was born #OTD in 1555.

He created important globes, improved the mathematical instruments of his day and applied mathematics in new ways to surveying and navigation. Gemma's rings, an astronomical instrument, are named after him. He observed the total lunar eclipse of 3 Mar 1569 and he also discovered the 1572 supernova in Cassiopeia on 9 Nov, which he observed two days before Tycho Brahe.

#science #cartography #astronomy

Gemma Frisius, (Maarten van Heemskerck, c. 1540–1545).

An artwork depicting a man with a globe in his hand.

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Images of the terrestrial globe of Gemma Frisius 1536 held by the Austrian National Library on behalf of the Rudolf Schmidt collection, Vienna.

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354d

English explorer and cartographer Robert Dudley was born #OTD in 1574.

The most important of Dudley's works was Dell'Arcano del Mare (Secrets of the Sea). It includes a comprehensive treatise on navigation and shipbuilding and it has become renowned as the first atlas of sea charts of the world. Originally published at Florence in 1646 in Italian, they represent a collection of all contemporary naval knowledge.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Dudley_(explorer)

#cartography

1646 map of the Southeastern Mediterranean by Robert Dudley.

The map meticulously details the coastline of the Southeastern Mediterranean, showing bays, capes, islands, and major ports. Key geographical features, such as the Nile Delta, the island of Cyprus, and the coastline of the Levant, are prominently displayed.

The map may also feature some inland topographical details, including mountain ranges, rivers, and major cities or settlements.

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332d

New Greater Northshore and MEGAMAP (Northwest King County) bike map update!

This version is very 1 Line light-rail focused, not just adding 1 Line stations but upgrading street labels for better wayfinding. It contains several other updates and two contributions as well.

https://solarbird.net/blog/2024/08/29/greater-northshore-bike-connector-map-1-4-release/

All previous advertised permalinks remain valid.

#biking #BikeMap #BikeTooter #maps #cartography

Greater Northshore Bike Connector Map version 1.4, in lowered-resolution preview form

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252d

Using GPS in the year 1565

There’s a wonderful web app (“Allmaps Here”) that shows your GPS location on old maps. I love it.

https://www.verbeeld.be/2024/11/17/using-gps-in-the-year-1565/

#maps #allmapshere #cartography #georeferencing

A vintage map showing a detailed, hand-drawn layout of a historic city with tightly packed buildings, narrow streets, and several landmarks. There is a purple marker near the center of the map. A button at the bottom reads, "Show maps around current location."

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A city square with cobblestone paving and historic European architecture under a clear blue sky. In the center, a building with a stepped gable façade is surrounded by older structures. There's a person in a brown coat walking a small dog nearby.

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241d

Diagramming Dante: Michelangelo Caetani’s Maps of the *Divina Commedia* (1855/1872)

https://publicdomainreview.org/collection/michelangelo-caetani-maps-of-the-divina-commedia/?utm_source=newsletter

Divina Commedia at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/1000

#cartography

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219d

20 Maps That Changed the World
How we illustrate the world affects how we experience it.

By Lorna Wallace

https://www.mentalfloss.com/maps-that-changed-the-world

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fra_Mauro_map

#cartography #history

The Fra Mauro Map of the world. The map depicts Asia, Africa and Europe, with South at the top.

The Fra Mauro map is a map of the world made around 1450 by the Italian (Venetian) cartographer Fra Mauro, which is “considered the greatest memorial of medieval cartography."

It is a circular planisphere drawn on parchment and set in a wooden frame that measures over two by two meters. Including Asia, the Indian Ocean, Africa, Europe, and the Atlantic, it is orientated with south at the top. The map is usually on display in the Biblioteca Nazionale Marciana in Venice in Italy.

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155d

Mapstodon.space is a Mastodon server for cartography & geospatial professionals and enthusiasts. Ask questions, share your maps, chat around, enjoy the emojis!

https://mapstodon.space

You can find out more at https://mapstodon.space/about or contact the admin @jeremy

#FeaturedServer #Maps #Cartography #Mapping #GIS #Geospatial #Cartographers #Geography #Mastodon #Fediverse #FreeFediverse

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161d

#Maps & #Cartography picks of the day:

➡️ @openstreetmap - OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit

➡️ @polgeonow - Maps on current events & politics

➡️ @mapologies - Blog mixing maps with geography & other topics

➡️ @CaGIS - US org promoting map/GIS research, education & use

➡️ @BKG - German government agency for Cartography & Geodesy (in German)

➡️ @mappery - Highlighting maps in real life incl signs, posters, artworks etc

➡️ @wfgWorkshop - Artist & cartographer, maps of fictional worlds

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45d

I've been complaining about this map for months, but now that it's done, I can share with you the rather impressive (if I do say so myself) timelapse of the illustration process. I'm really rather proud of how this one came out!

(the video's too big for anyplace but YouTube)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwp1AMKGvxs

(Reshares vastly appreciated, btw!)

#fantasyArt #fantasy #ttrpg #ttrpgs #WickedWhiskers #KeystoneFantasyRoleplaying #Cortex #CortexPrime #dwarves #cartography #map #illustration

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18d

There's been talk on the Fedi about why online maps like OSM and Google use the Mercator projection, and I think it needs a bit of clarification. (Do NOT snitch tag.)

Online maps are _mostly_ used at small scales, of a district or a city. At these scales, the earth is approximately flat, so users expect a map that is _conformal_, one that preserves angles and shapes.

Online maps are continuously zoomable from continents down to your house. They usually aren't rendered on your browser straight from vectors, but are batch-rendered offline into square tile images. If you're on a slowish Internet connection, you can see them loading individually.

As you zoom an online map, tiles get replaced with higher-resolution ones, and as you scroll, tiles get filled in to fill the gaps. You could theoretically scroll and zoom forever, so the map needs to not have a magically special reference latitude or longitude. These constrains mean that the map needs to be _equatorial_, so that no point gets special treatment, and _cylindrical_, so that meridians are vertical and lines of latitude are horizontal.

And which is the map projection that is all of equatorial, cylindrical and conformal? Mercator!

#Maps #Cartography #OpenStreetMap

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29d

Last week we published a set of three in-depth #map reports covering territorial control across #Somalia's claimed territories from 2023 to present. The June 2024 report is free for all readers, and shows the height of "#IslamicState" (#ISIS/#ISIL) control in the country:

https://www.polgeonow.com/2025/06/somalia-territorial-control-map-2024-isis-shabaab.html

#HornOfAfrica #cartography #maps #geography #Somaliland #Puntland #SSC_Khaatumo #mapping @geography @cartography @geopolitics #AlShabaab #AlQaeda #security #OSINT