A Special Collections Exhibition
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Mapping the New World |
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Antonio
de Herrera,
Map of the Pacific Ocean, 1600
This
map shows the half of the world assigned to Spain in 1493, between the two lines
of demarcation (the lefthand one passing close to what is now Malaysia). The
manuscript version of this map was the work of Lopez de Velasco, Spain’s
cosmographer, about 1575, and this printed version appears in the book entitled Decadas,
by Antonio de Herrera, published at Madrid in 1600.
This master-map was designed to show the location of twelve other maps,
each showing some part of the Spanish empire. The maps are not detailed or even
very accurate, but they together show a grasp of cartography well beyond the
reach of any other European power of the period. Our detail shows a part of the
subsidiary map that delineates the Caribbean area.
© Special Collections Division
The University of Texas at Arlington Libraries
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