Presented in affiliation with the Medieval and Early Modern Collaborative Network

Mapping the Unknown: Cartographers’ Strategies for Navigating Uncertainty

Chet Van Duzer | Board Member, Lazarus Project, University of Rochester

Wednesday, 22 October | 12:10pm-1:30pm

Abstract: We tend to trust maps as accurate depictions of the world, and most early modern cartographers are content to benefit from that trust without raising questions about the reliability of their sources. In this talk I examine several methods that cartographers used from the fifteenth to the eighteenth centuries to depart from this convention and indicate to their viewers which parts of their map they were certain about, and which they were uncertain about. Some of these methods include listing sites about whose location the cartographer is uncertain, using a different graphic style to depict unknown coastlines, using signs to distinguish between certain and uncertain regions, and surrendering to uncertainty and reprinting varying maps of the same region together.

ABOUT THE SPEAKER

Chet Van Duzer is a board member of the Lazarus Project at the University of Rochester, directing projects on maps and globes. He has published extensively on the history of cartography; his latest book is Frames that Speak: Cartouches on Early Modern Maps (2023), which is available in Open Access. Currently he is working on books about the cartographic history of the Indian Ocean and self-portraits by cartographers on maps.

Hybrid Event

Places to attend in-person are limited, so please register as soon as possible to reserve your place.

On Campus venue:

Vere Gordon Childe Centre,

Level 4 Madsen Building (F09)

Click here for map

Zoom link to be sent ahead of the event via subscription list.

Image: Unsplash