Author Description

Bringing together a rich and diverse collection of 100 historical maps from the Paleolithic to the present, The Oxford Map Companion: One Hundred Sources in World History illustrates how peoples and cultures throughout the human past have imagined their worlds. The collection--which includes many never-before published maps--spans a broad spectrum of human time and cultural diversity. It also features a wide range of map types from every continent, including stick charts, porcelain maps, maps created on sealskin, celestial maps, powder-horn and buckskin maps, silk "escape maps," radio maps, ordnance surveys, subway maps, and maps of the Internet.Combining cutting-edge scholarship and accessibility, renowned scholar and award-wining author Patricia Seed presents new and innovative ways of looking at maps. Organized both chronologically and cartographically, nearly every historical map is accompanied by a locator map and/or schematic diagram--personally crafted by the author--that helps the reader to see the map in its geographical context and to grasp the meaning of its symbols, labels, and overall layout. A master chronology of world history in the front of the book and timelines at the beginning of each Part set the history of mapping in a global framework. Finally, every map includes a corresponding QR code that will allow readers to instantly explore a Google Earth outline of the area covered in the historical map on their smartphones.Visit the companion website at http://www.mapcompanion.org/.