Unconventional Theories about the Earth’s Shape: Both Ancient and Modern

The Library of Congress holds books, journal articles and other resources that explore unconventional theories about the shape of the Earth. This post focuses on maps that show the Earth in unusual forms.

Early civilizations held diverse beliefs about the shape of the Earth. Some believed that the Earth was flat or that it was floating on water. Below is a diagram of an ancient theory about the Earth’s form. The diagram was derived from an article by O.C. Whitehouse, a 19^th century professor and expert in ancient Hebrew literature. The Earth is represented as a disc, enclosed in a vault and surrounded by an ocean.

The concept of a spherical Earth started to gain acceptance in the third century BC. Aristotle, Parmenides, and other ancient philosophers correctly stated that the Earth is spherical in shape. The astronomer Aristarchus of Samos believed that the Earth revolved around the sun. Aristarchus measured the circumference of the Earth and Moon by observing the Earth’s circular shadow on the Moon during a lunar eclipse. The geographer and mathematician Claudius Ptolemy described the Earth as a sphere with the Sun and planets revolving around it; this concept is known as the geocentric model of the universe.

The idea of a spherical Earth continued to be recognized throughout the Middle Ages; however, there were skeptics. In the year AD 550, Cosmas Indicopleustes, a merchant and writer, described the world as a giant mountain, enclosed in a vault and surrounded by water. Noted geographer and historian Johann Georg Kohl traced this representation of Cosmas’s theory from a print in the French publication Voyageurs Anciens et Modernes.

The fact that the Earth has a spherical shape has been widely acknowledged in modern society, although the concept of a flat and stationary Earth gained acceptance among some individuals in the 19th century. This is mainly attributed to the British inventor and flat Earth advocate, Samuel Birley Rowbotham. Samuel Rowbotham believed that the Earth is shaped like a disc with the North Pole at its center. He named his theory Zetetic Astronomy. In 1865, Rowbotham wrote a book titled Zetetic Astronomy: Earth not a Globe! under the pseudonym Parallax.

Samuel Rowbotham passed away in 1884; however, the number of individuals supporting the flat Earth theory continued to grow. Featured below are two maps that were made after Rowbotham’s death.

In 1893, an American professor named Orlando Ferguson created the Map of the Square and Stationary Earth. Professor Ferguson based his beliefs on a biblical passage which describes four angels standing at the corners of the Earth.

Detailed below is an illustration from the map. Two men are desperately clinging to a spherical Earth as it travels 65,000 miles per hour around the Sun.

Next is a map created in 1920 by another American professor, John G. Abizaid. Professor Abizaid believed that the Earth is flat and stationary with the Sun, Moon, and stars in constant motion. Abizaid shared his theories in his book The Enlightenment of the World.

The number of flat Earth advocates increased during the 20th century. In 1956, Samuel Shenton, a conspiracy theorist and lecturer, founded the International Flat Earth Research Society. As of today, flat Earth research organizations remain active.

I have included some background information regarding unconventional beliefs about the Earth’s shape; discover more through the sources listed below.

Further Reading:

• The Flat Earth and Its Advocates, a Library of Congress research guide prepared by Sean Bryant, Science Reference Specialist, Science, Technology and Business Division. This guide is adapted from a 1998 reference list created by Ruth Freitag titled “The Flat Earth and its Advocates: A List of References.” The guide provides links to books and journal articles on the pseudoscientific theory that the earth is a flat disc.
• The Atlas of Legendary Lands : Fabled Kingdoms, Phantom Islands, Lost Continents and Other Mythical Worlds by Judith A. McLeod. (pages 20-25). 
• The Phantom Atlas : The Greatest Myths, Lies and Blunders on Maps by Edward Brooke-Hitching. (pages 102-105).