(WASHINGTON, DC. August 19, 2013] The discovery of the oldest surviving engraved globe to show the New World was announced today in Washington in The Portolan, journal of the Washington Map Society, in its Fall 2013 issue (#87). Copies have been posted to all active members of the Society and to all institutions who are active subscribers to the journal. [Members who have not yet received their copies should allow for occasional USPS delivery delays.] Copies of the issue, with this article and more, may be ordered via http://www.washmapsociety.org/Purchase-of-Back-Issues.htm .
The previously-unknown globe, which is about the size of a grapefruit, was made from the lower halves of two ostrich eggs, and dates from the very early 1500s. Until now, it was thought that the oldest globe to show the New World was the “Lenox Globe” at the New York Public Library, but the author presents evidence that this Renaissance ostrich egg globe was actually used to cast the copper Lenox globe, putting its date c. 1504. The globe reflects the knowledge gleaned by Christopher Columbus and other very early European explorers including Amerigo Vespucci after whom America was named. The author points to Florence Italy as where the globe was made, and offers evidence that the engraver was influenced by or worked in the workshop of Leonardo da Vinci.
Tom Sander, Editor of The Portolan, who has personally inspected the globe, noted that “This is a major discovery, and we are pleased to be the vehicle for its announcement. We undertook a very extensive peer review process to vet the article, which itself was based on more than a year of scientific and documentary research.”
The author, Stefaan Missinne, PhD. is an independent Belgian research scholar who has published on the subject of ancient globes made from different materials such as ivory. He said, “When I heard of this globe, I was initially skeptical about its date, origin, geography and provenance, but I had to find out for myself. After all no one had known of it, and discoveries of this type are extremely rare. I was excited to look into it further, and the more I did so, and the more research that we did, the clearer it became that we had a major find.” The globe was purchased in 2012 at the London Map Fair from a dealer who said it had been in an “important European collection” for many decades. The current owner made it available to the author for his research, which included scientific testing of the globe itself, computer tomography testing, and carbon dating, assessment of the ink used to color its engraved surface, and close geographical, cartographic, and historical analysis. More than 100 leading scholars and experts were consulted worldwide and are cited in the article’s acknowledgements, and gratitude was expressed to the New York Public Library for its helpful assistance.
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This thrice-yearly journal with articles on maps, the history of cartography, and exploration is the only journal of its kind in the Americas. Below is information on the Fall 2013 issue recently published. See http://www.washmapsociety.org/The-Portolan-Journal.htm for details on ordering the current or past issues of “The Portolan”. That link also takes the reader to the contents list of all back issues and an index to those issues. The focus of the society and the journal is not solely Washington; topics are widespread in scope.
"THE PORTOLAN": JOURNAL OF THE WASHINGTON MAP SOCIETY
ISSUE 87 (Fall 2013)
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Issue 87 (Fall 2013), consisting of 80 pages, was published in August 2013 and is in distribution to all paid subscribers and members in good standing of the Washington Map Society. Copies are available for purchase.
STEFAAN MISSINE describes his research leading to the conclusion that an early 1500’s globe engraved on an ostrich egg is the earliest surviving globe showing the New World. CAROL DELANEY posits that Columbus had much broader thoughts than just finding a westbound route to Asia. CLAUDIA CARLSON describes her career as a graphic designer of maps for books of all genres. PETER VAN DER KROGT takes a close look at a dolmen in France. BERT JOHNSON describes a new map conference series that has begun in Athens. Five books are reviewed. And there is more.
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"The Portolan" is published three times per year; issue 87 is due for release in December 2013.
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CONTENTS OF ISSUE 87 – Fall 2013
ARTICLES
“A Newly Discovered Early Sixteenth-Century Globe Engraved on an Ostrich Egg: The Earliest Surviving Globe Showing the New World”, by Stefaan Missinne
“Columbus and the Quest for Jerusalem”, by Carol Delaney
“Mapping Real and Imaginary Worlds: Graphic Design in the Pursuit of Learning”, by Claudia Carlson
“The Pierre levée at Poitiers: A dolmen with graffiti by cartographers and draughtsmen”, by Peter Van Der Krogt
RECENT PUBLICATIONS
This regular feature, a bibliographic listing of articles and books appearing worldwide on antique maps and globes and the history of cartography, is compiled by Joel Kovarsky.
BOOK/CD REVIEWS
The World at Their Fingertips: Eighteenth-Century British Two-Sheet Double-Hemisphere World Maps (Reviewer: Dennis Reinhartz)
Sea Charts of Norway 1585-1812 (Reviewer: Bill Stanley)
Viking America (Reviewer: Birgitta Wallace)
A Renaissance Globemaker's Toolbox: Johannes Schoner and the Revolution of Modern Science, 1475-1550 (Reviewer: Gregory McIntosh)
The Brocktorff Mapmakers (Reviewer: Bert Johnson)
SHORTER ITEMS
1. Washington Map Society Meetings, September - December 2013
2. President’s Fall 2013 Letter, by J.C. McElveen
3. Exhibitions and Meetings
4. Map Site Seeing
5. In Memorium – Hirsch, Highbarger, Morrison
6. Ristow Prize Competition 2014
7. WMS Annual Business Meeting, April 2013, by Hal Meinheit
8. WMS Annual Dinner, May 2013, by Tom Sander
9. New Conference Series in Athens, by Bert Johnson
10. Spotlight on the WMS Membership – Leigh Lockwood, Barry Ruderman, Luke Vavra
11. Letter to the Editor
12. Cartographic Notes, by Thomas Sander
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AUTHORS OF ARTICLES AND REVIEWS
CLAUDIA CARLSON is a graphic designer who creates maps for books.
DR. CAROL DELANEY is an Emerita Professor, Department of Cultural and Social Anthropology, Stanford University and an Invited Research Scholar at the John Carter Brown Library. Her most recent book is “Columbus and the Quest for Jerusalem.”
BERT JOHNSON is a past WMS president of WMS. A frequent contributor to “The Portolan,” he specializes in maps Mediterranean.
JOEL KOVARSKY is proprietor of The Prime Meridian: Antique Maps & Books.
DR. PETER VAN DER KROGT is head of the URU-Explokart research program for the History of Cartography, University of Amsterdam/University of Utrecht, the Netherlands.
J.C. McELVEEN is 2012-2014 President of the Washington Map Society.
GREGORY MCINTOSH is a researcher and widely published author. His most recent book “The Johannes Ruysch and Martin Waldseemüller World Maps: The Interplay and Merging of Early Sixteenth Century New World Cartographies (2012)” was reviewed in Issue 86 (Spring 2013) of “The Portolan.”
HAL MEINHEIT is Secretary of the Washington Map Society.
DR. STEFAAN MISSINNE collects art, including old maps, ancient globes and art chamber objects, and is a member of IMCoS, the WMS, Coronelli Society and BIMCC. He is the author of “Ivory Globes. Distinguishing Elephant Ivory from Calcium Carbonate, or distinguishing the real from the fake,” in the “IMCoS Journal” Nr 79, Winter 1999 pp. 25-28 and of the article on the silver globe of King James II (c 1695), Issue 83 (Spring 2012) of “The Portolan.”
DR. DENNIS REINHARTZ, an emeritus professor of history at The University of Texas at Arlington, is the author of “The Art of the Map: An Illustrated History of Map Elements and Embellishments” (2012), which was reviewed in Issue 86 (Spring 2013) of “The Portolan.”
THOMAS SANDER is editor of “The Portolan”.
WILLIAM A. STANLEY is Retired Chief Historian, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and Owner of Cartographic Associates, antique map and print dealer.
DR. BIRGITTA WALLACE is Senior Archaeologist (Emerita), Parks Canada. Her research has focused on Viking archaeology, with special emphasis on the westward expansion. She has published widely on the L’Anse aux Meadows site and Vikings in North America.
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Web Site for more information about the Washington Map Society: http://www.WashMapSociety.org
A listing and index of the contents of all issues of 'The Portolan' is accessible at http://www.washmapsociety.org/Portolan-Indexes.htm
Also at http://www.washmapsociety.org/The-Portolan-Journal.htm is information on how to order and locate issues of the journal, and procedures for prospective authors.
Online links to several past articles are also at the “Portolan” web page.
Membership/Subscription Cost: Subscription cost is the same as membership, and may be commenced at any time. To U.S. addresses, the cost is US $45.00 per year. To Canadian addresses the rate is US$50.00 per year. For other foreign addressees, the annual cost is US$ 65.00. Multiple year memberships/ subscriptions are available; the annual cost is reduced if a multiple year membership is chosen – see web site. All non-US address copies of the journal are sent airmail; the US Postal Service no longer offers a surface option. Payment is accepted in US dollars only. Payment may be made via PayPal for membership/subscriptions and back issues. Membership/ subscription/PayPal details form can be found at the Washington Map Society Web Site below. For further information, contact John Docktor at [log in to unmask]
Current/Past Copies: Copies of 'The Portolan' beginning with issue 66 cost US$15.00 postpaid for US; $17 postpaid to Canada, and $20 to other foreign addresses. Payment is accepted in US dollars only, and may be paid via check or PayPal. Issues 65 and earlier are available at a lower cost. A discount is given for orders of multiple issues. See http://www.washmapsociety.org/Purchase-of-Back-Issues.htm for details on ordering the current or past Portolans.
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Posted By:
Thomas F. Sander
Editor, 'The Portolan'
Washington Map Society
9501 Burke Road, # 10793
Burke VA 22009-8036 USA
Phone: 703.426.2880 International: +1.703.426.2880
Fax: 703.426.2881 International: +1.703.426.2881
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Washington Map Society Web Site: www.WashMapSociety.org
Portolan Web Site: http://www.washmapsociety.org/The-Portolan-Journal.htm
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excuse cross-posting