Map that named America is a puzzle for researchers

[seemslikeadream]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20071203/ts_nm/usa_map_dc




WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The only surviving copy of the 500-year-old map that first used the name America goes on permanent display this month at the Library of Congress, but even as it prepares for its debut, the 1507 Waldseemuller map remains a puzzle for researchers.


Why did the mapmaker name the territory America and then change his mind later? How was he able to draw South America so accurately? Why did he put a huge ocean west of America years before European explorers discovered the Pacific?

"That's the kind of conundrum, the question, that is still out there," said John Hebert, chief of the geography and map division of the Library of Congress.

The 12 sheets that make up the map, purchased from German Prince Johannes Waldburg-Wolfegg for $10 million in 2003, were mounted on Monday in a huge 6-foot by 9.5-foot (1.85 meter by 2.95 meter) display case machined from a single block of aluminum.

[Warpy]

1. They'd explored much of the coastlines

of the eastern continents, although they had absolutely no idea of their relative size (look how huge Cuba is!). They also had no idea how big the land mass was, but they knew from Marco Polo's expedition to China that there was a vast sea east of China, so they figured the Americas were just a small land barrier between them. Since the map ends at about the Middle Atlantic region, they assumed a northwest passage was entirely possible.

In other words, they had no clue just how big this planet really is.

[seemslikeadream]

3. some people do not realize how small it really is

[Goblinmonger]

2. I got another conundrum for ya.

Why the fuck is Europe in the middle of the map? How you gonna trust someone that doesn't even know that North America goes in the middle.

[KurtNYC]

4. The Chinese charted the entire planet as of 1420

They used eclipses to map the position of stars as seen simultaneously from different points on the planet. Then returned to Beijing to compare notes.

The Chinese had the ability and then received more motivation to explore and open direct trade routes when the Muslims and Mongols cut off the Silk Road around 1400.

[seemslikeadream]

5. The Piri Reis Map

http://www.world-mysteries.com/sar_1.htm





Here is a summary of some of the most unusual findings about the map:


Scrutiny of the map shows that the makers knew the accurate circumference of the Earth to within 50 miles.


The coastline and island that are shown in Antarctica must have been navigated at some period prior to 4,000 B.C. when these areas were free of ice from the last Ice Age.

The map is thought to be one of the earliest "world maps" to show the Americas. Early scholars suggested that it showed accurate latitudes of the South American and African coastlines - only 21 years after the voyages of Columbus! (And remember, Columbus did NOT discover North America - only the Caribbean!) Writing in Piri Re'is own hand described how he had made the map from a collection of ancient maps, supplemented by charts that were drawn by Columbus himself. This suggests that these ancient maps were available to Columbus and could have been the basis of his expedition.
As can be seen below, an azimuthal projection ( looking at the globe from a point above the globe), from the point above Cairo, Africa (Egypt) shows that the Piri Reis map corresponds more or less with the lower right quarter of this map if one rotates it some 20 degrees counter clockwise.