1.2.2. Cartography of the Ancient world

Thirty years ago, most lectures on Ancient cartography were focused on Europe – they dealt with geographic knowledge of Ancient Greece, described Roman cartography and usually finished with the Byzantines.

Nowadays, we also try to pay due attention to other mapping traditions, which ceased to be considered less important than European cartographies. Definitions of maps and mapping have significantly widened. At present, mental maps or maps recorded by oral presentation are perceived as equal to their handwritten of printed counterparts. Even if we concentrate only on printed maps, there are many other cultures that have to be taken into account.

Fig.2.2: Map on the clay tablet (Ga-Sur city)