Top of page

Category: Asian History

Southern Lands, Explorers, and Bears – Oh My!

Posted by: Amelia Raines

The story of the naming of America has been told before – not surprisingly considering the object central to the story, Martin Waldseemüller’s 1507 world map, is one of the most important treasures in the Geography and Map Division. The name was bestowed by the mapmaker to show his support for Amerigo Vespucci’s argument that …

Posted in: 15th century cartography, 16th century cartography, 17th century cartography, 18th century cartography, 19th century cartography, African History, American History, Asian History, European History, Exploration, Middle East and North African History, Oceania

Map of Krakatau and surrounding islands

The Unmaking of an Island

Posted by: Amelia Raines

The dramatic eruption of Krakatoa (or Krakatau in Indonesian) in 1883 was, as our sister blog Headlines and Heroes describes it, “one of the first global catastrophes.” By its very destruction, this small Indonesian island was thrust onto the world stage, its name becoming almost shorthand for volcanic disaster. Geologist Rogier Verbeek, who had briefly …

Posted in: 19th century cartography, Asian History, Oceania, Physical Geography

Illustrated and illuminated map of the northern Indian Ocean showing ships, islands, wildlife, cities, and people

Winds of (Ex)Change in the Indian Ocean

Posted by: Amelia Raines

Take a look at this monsoon chart, paying special attention to the western Indian Ocean between the east coast of Africa and the west coast of India, and you might notice a pattern: The left chart depicts the prevailing winds in the Indian Ocean in February; the right, in August. In winter, a sea of …

Posted in: 16th century cartography, 17th century cartography, 19th century cartography, African History, Asian History, Exploration