Chocolate Rave

Cartography is the Greek word used to define the science of drawing charts or carts, and maps.  Ptolemy made a distinction between Chorography and Geography, which was later revised by the Renaissance writers.  Chorography is the term used to describe the making of maps, be they maps of the entire areas, or a road map, of towns, cities and counties.  And Geography refers to the mapping of entire countries.

The father of the atlas or the world globe, was a businessman, a map collector and a cartographer during the late 1500′s, Abraham Ortelius.  He published the book Theatrum Orbis Terrarum during 1570 in Antwerp, which has been translated over the many years into various different languages.  He had the view that geography was the eye of World History, and that only would one understand all of history, through the understanding of geography.

In his book was a series of maps, which he created to be not only maps of regions and countries, but they were the stages of the theatres of the world.  For many people during this time, it was fashionable to hang a world map in their home, a whole collection of them if they could find them.  This was then, as the modern day version of the coffee table book is today.  Many people today, do not have the money to hang say…a collection of Picasso works, or Gustav Klimt originals, but they can go to their local bookstore and find books with reproductions, and spend hours looking through the works of such master painters.  World history through art is found.

This is what Ortelius wanted, a book for people that would provide them with a convenient means to view the history of the world, the theatre of the world.  Many people during his time, did have a collection of maps, but due to lack of space they were kept rolled up and tucked away.  He expanded the knowledge of the world, at the same time he condensed it into a book that people could carry around with them, bring the world to their hands so to speak.  This is what a map does today, it brings everywhere into right here, it puts the world into the palms of your hands.