Spindly trees, rusted gates, crumbling stone, a solitary mourner: these things come to mind when we think of cemeteries. But not long ago, many burial grounds were lively places, with gardens and crowds of people -- and for much of human history, we didn’t bury our dead at all.
For thousands of years, people made both functional maps and what are known as cosmographies, illustrating the earth and its position in the cosmos, often including constellations, gods, and mythic locations. These maps were meant to depict the world's geography, but weren't necessarily useful for navigation and contained some glaring mistakes.
Like most other technologies, map-making has improved over time. This lesson shows just a handful of some of the most fun mapmaking bloopers over time. Here are some links for how to learn more.
You can take an interactive 3D virtual tour of the mappae mundi here and zoom in on some of the more fantastical details!
Stanford University has a whole exhibit of all the maps of California as an island and you can check it out virtually here.
Curious about how one of history’s most reknowned mapmakers could draw such an incorrect map with a magical rock at the north pole? Here’s an article that digs into Mercator’s North Pole map a bit more.
Has anyone ever told you, “Stand up straight!”
or scolded you for slouching at a family dinner? Comments like that might be
annoying—but they’re not wrong. Your posture is the foundation for every
movement your body makes and can determine how well your body adapts to the
stresses on it.
