Journeys of the Imagination
March 21, 2006-August 18, 2006
Changing Exhibits Hall, 1st Floor of the McKim Building

An exhibition of World Maps from the Cartographic Collections of the Norman B. Leventhal Map Center at the Boston Public Library. This exhibition will feature a selection of World maps, atlases, and globes demonstrating human-kind’s changing perception of the world.

Beginning with the Medieval European world view of three continents (Europe, Africa, and Asia) centered on Jerusalem utilizing T-O diagrams and late 15 th century world maps from some of the earliest printed books, the display will proceed to illustrate how Europeans integrated the concept of a new continent (America) during the 16 th and 17 th centuries, and slowly adopted the concept of Australia and Antarctica in the 18 th and 19 th centuries. There will be a variety of thematic map topics and map projections, demonstrating what data is selected for display and how geographical dimensions are transferred from a sphere to a flat piece of paper, often producing unusual compilations or distortions that support strongly held biases or differing world views.

Included in this exhibition will be an opportunity to explore Geographic Information Systems and how they continue to bring knowledge and transform our view of the world. The exhibition will conclude with a selection of hand-drawn maps by Boston school children illustrating their varying mental maps of the world.

The exhibition catalog includes three essays by noted cartographic scholars, as well as the exhibition images and narrative.

Our educational outreach program sponsors free tours for middle school age students. Transportation underwriting will be offered to classes who request it. For more information please email us at maps@bpl.org or call us at 617-859-2387.

Beginning in May 2006, a virtual tour of this exhibition, will be available on our website. www.leventhalmapcenter.org