Mappaemundi and the Medieval Worldview
Open Access
- Author:
- Lim, Arielle
- Area of Honors:
- History
- Degree:
- Bachelor of Arts
- Document Type:
- Thesis
- Thesis Supervisors:
- Kathryn Elizabeth Salzer, Thesis Supervisor
Cathleen Denise Cahill, Thesis Honors Advisor - Keywords:
- History
Maps
Cartography
Christianity
Europe
Medieval - Abstract:
- This thesis addresses the common misconceptions of medieval cartography, specifically regarding medieval mappaemundi within the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. I closely examine the Ebstorf Map, Psalter World Map, and Hereford Mappa Mundi in order to provide an in-depth analysis of both secular and religious implications of the medieval worldview revealed within these maps. Despite the geographical inaccuracies due to the limitations within cartography during the thirteenth through fourteenth centuries, medieval mappaemundi served as encyclopedic devices for the medieval audience. These particular maps contained information of all elements of the known world including people, animals, places, and more broadly, how medieval Christendom fit within the context of the known world. While each of these maps possess distinctive characteristics, their overarching structure and purpose demonstrate the breadth of information conveyed through a cartographical medium. At a glance, these world maps communicate an overwhelming amount of information to their viewers due to the sheer physical size of the maps, but upon closer examination, it is evident that medieval mappaemundi were particularly powerful tools for knowledge dissemination due to their strong visual components which enabled even illiterate audiences to easily understand the fundamental themes represented in medieval world maps. In essence, this study seeks to examine each map as a respective primary source document, using both a historical lens and an artistic lens to identify shared themes between the maps in order to identify overlapping iconography, symbols, and even perceptions towards elements outside of the realm of medieval Christendom.