Historical Context
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“…a land lies beyond the stars, beyond the paths of year and sun, where Atlas the heaven bearer turns on his shoulders the firmament studded with blazing stars.”
Interactive Exploration
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“In describing the general aspect of the Earth, we have sought to represent the lands known to the ancients with the addition of those discovered by the moderns […]”
"Cosmographiae introductio"
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“The reason for this little book is to put forth a certain kind of introduction to our description of the universe drawn both as a globe and as a map.”
Imago Mundi
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“A fourth part [of the Earth] has been discovered by Amerigo Vespucci […]. Inasmuch as both Europe and Asia received their names from women, I see no reason why any one should justly object to calling this part Amerige […]”
The New World
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“There we learned that the land was not an island but a continent, both because it extends over very long, straight shorelines, and because it is filled with countless inhabitants.”
The Ancient World
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“[...] according to Ptolemy and Alfraganus, the Earth rotates 24,000 miles, or 6,000 leagues [33,000 km]: which, divided by 360 degrees, makes each degree equal 162/3 leagues […]”
The Route to the Indies
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“[...] the fleet sent by the King of Portugal two years ago to make discoveries about the region of Guinea: such a voyage as that I do not call discovery, but merely a going to discovered lands […]"
Catai and Cipango
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“Although I have spoken often of the short distance that lies between here and the Indies, where the spices grow […]”
The Earth
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“I have resolved, Magnificent Lorenzo, that, just as I have given you an account by letter of what happened to me, I shall send you two depictions of the world […]”
The Ocean
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“For if my companions had not relied upon me and my knowledge of cosmography, there would have been no pilot or captain on the voyage […]”
The Sky
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“Then I turned to the right, setting my mind upon the other pole, and saw four stars not seen before except by the first people. ”