Exploring the Early Americas

The Jay I. Kislak Collection

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Mapping the World

Italian Adventurer Ludovico de Varthema Italian Adventurer Ludovico de Varthema

The European world view changed dramatically following the voyages of early explorers.  News of the “new worlds” challenged current cosmographic beliefs as well as the information in geographical works by Claudius Ptolemy and other ancient Classical Greek astronomers and geographers. Maps played a major role in the information transfer, providing unmatched representations of newly discovered geographic realities. Johann Gutenberg’s mechanical printing press and the development of woodcut and engraving techniques ensured the preservation and wide distribution of this new information.

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