From the first known map of the trading world (inscribed on a Babylonian clay tablet in 600 BC) to Abu Abd Allah Muhammad al-Idrisi’s 1154 world map, to National Geographic’s rendering of the earth’s ocean floor, cartographic representations have helped us imagine and navigate trade routes, political states, scientific discoveries and geographic territories.
Published maps have typically been the province of dominant cultures. But that is changing. Minority perspectives have exploded, supported by the latest technological developments, popular culture and commercial currents (see “La Frontera,” April 6). Many people—artists or not—have re-imagined their world by way of Google Earth, GPS technology, MapQuest, cell phones, and even their own five senses. (See This American Life.) (more…)
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