fossil_digger Report This Comment Date: August 24, 2012 12:40AM
Currently located in the Library of the Topkapi Palace in Istanbul, the Piri
Reis map is a puzzling enigma. It outlines the coast of western Africa, the
eastern coast of South America, and even a section of the northern coast of
Antarctica (thought to have been discovered 300 years after Piri Reis’s
lifetime). Furthermore, the map shows the coastline without its glacial
covering. Geological evidence suggests that Antarctica was last in this ice-less
state in 4000 BC. Reis was a famous Turkish admiral whose passion
(understandably for a seafarer) was cartography. Taking advantage of his rank
and his privileged access to the Imperial Library of Constantinople, his 1513
gazelle skin map was built upon the work of others, with some of his
cartographical sources dating back as far as the time of Alexander the Great.
The map also seems to detail more about the topographical features of South
America than Europeans were thought to have in 1513, such as the Andes.
BlahX3 Report This Comment Date: August 24, 2012 12:45AM
Way cool.
Anonomous Report This Comment Date: June 15, 2024 10:25AM
Obviously Antarctica wasn't always iced over.