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Map Mappamundi.

About this Item

Title

  • Mappamundi.

Summary

  • Little is known about the 15th-century Venetian geographer and cosmographer Giovanni Leardo, beyond the fact that three of his world maps have survived from late-medieval times, signed by their creator. This is the oldest world map held in the library of the American Geographical Society, and it is considered the finest example of a medieval mappamundi in the Western hemisphere. Leardo's two other maps, similar but not identical, are in Italy, at the Biblioteca Comunale in Verona and the Museo Civico in Vicenza. The map depicts the parts of the world known to Europeans in the late Middle Ages -- Europe, Asia, and Africa -- and, as on many medieval wall maps, shows Jerusalem at the center and east towards the top. Archer M. Huntington purchased and presented the map to the American Geographical Society in 1906. In 1928 the society published a full-size color facsimile and an accompanying text by John K. Wright, The Leardo Map of the World: 1452 or 1453. Wright's work was essentially a detailed description of the layout, names, and features on the map itself. Rand McNally also reproduced the map as a Christmas card in 1952.

Names

  • Leardo, Giovanni, flourished 1440 Creator.

Created / Published

  • [place of publication not identified] : [publisher not identified], [1452 to 1453]

Headings

  • -  1452 to 1453
  • -  Geography, Medieval
  • -  Mappae mundi
  • -  World maps

Notes

  • -  Title devised, in English, by Library staff.
  • -  Original resource extent: 1 map : color, manuscript ; 73 x 60 centimeters.
  • -  Original resource at: University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Libraries.
  • -  Content in Italian.
  • -  Description based on data extracted from World Digital Library, which may be extracted from partner institutions.

Medium

  • 1 online resource.

Source Collection

  • American Geographical Society Library Digital Map Collection

Digital Id

Library of Congress Control Number

  • 2021668432

Online Format

  • compressed data
  • image

Additional Metadata Formats

IIIF Presentation Manifest

Rights & Access

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Credit Line: [Original Source citation], World Digital Library

More about Copyright and other Restrictions

For additional information and contact information for many of the partner organizations, see this archived capture of the World Digital Library site from 2021.

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Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Leardo, Giovanni, Flourished 1440 Creator. Mappamundi. [Place of Publication Not Identified: Publisher Not Identified, to 1453, 1452] Map. https://www.loc.gov/item/2021668432/.

APA citation style:

Leardo, G. (1452) Mappamundi. [Place of Publication Not Identified: Publisher Not Identified, to 1453] [Map] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/2021668432/.

MLA citation style:

Leardo, Giovanni, Flourished 1440 Creator. Mappamundi. [Place of Publication Not Identified: Publisher Not Identified, to 1453, 1452] Map. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/2021668432/>.