Everything about T And O Map totally explained
A
T and O map or
O-T or
T-O map (
orbis terrae, orb or circle of the earth), is a type of
medieval world map, sometimes also called a
Beatine map or a
Beatus map because one of the earliest known representations of this sort is attributed to
Beatus of Liébana, an 8th century Spanish
monk. The map appeared in the prologue to his twelve books of commentaries on the
Apocalypse.
The T-O map represents the physical world as first described by the
7th century scholar
Isidore of Seville in his
Etymologiae (chapter 14,
de terra et partibus):
Orbis a rotunditate circuli dictus, quia sicut rota est [...] Undique enim Oceanus circumfluens eius in circulo ambit fines. Divisus est autem trifarie: e quibus una pars Asia, altera Europa, tertia Africa nuncupatur.
The [inhabitated] mass of solid land is called round after the roundness of a circle, because it's like a wheel [...] Because of this, the Ocean flowing around it's contained in a circular limit, and it's divided in three parts, one part being called Asia, the second Europe, and the third Africa.
Although Isidore taught in the
Etymologiae that the Earth was 'round', his meaning was ambiguous and some writers think he referred to a disc-shaped Earth. However, other writings by Isidore make it clear that he considered the Earth to be globular. Indeed, the theory of a
spherical earth had always been the prevailing assumption among the learned since at least
Aristotle, who had divided the spherical earth into
zones of climate, with a
frigid clime at the
poles, a deadly
torrid clime near the
equator, and a mild and habitable
temperate clime between the two.
The T and O map is representing only the top-half of the spherical Earth. It was presumably tacitly considered a convenient
projection of the inhabited parts, the northern temperate half of the globe. Since the southern temperate clime was considered uninhabited, or unattainable, there was no need to depict them on a world map. It was then believed that no one could cross the torrid equatorial clime and reach the unknown lands on the other half of the globe. These imagined lands were called
antipodes.
The
T is the
Mediterranean, dividing the three
continents,
Asia,
Europe and
Africa, and the
O is the encircling
Ocean.
Jerusalem was generally represented in the center of the map. Asia was typically the size of the other two continents combined. Because the sun rose in the east, Paradise (the Garden of Eden) was generally depicted as being in Asia, and Asia was situated at the top portion of the map.
This qualitative and conceptual type of medieval
cartography could yield extremely detailed maps in addition to simple representations. The earliest maps had only a few cities and the most important bodies of water noted. The four sacred rivers of the
holy land were always present. More useful tools for the traveller were the
itinerary, which listed in order the names of towns between two points, and the
periplus that did the same for harbours and landmarks along a seacoast.
Later maps of this same conceptual format featured many rivers and cities of Eastern as well as Western Europe, and other features encountered during the
Crusades. Decorative illustrations were also added in addition to the new geographic features. The most important cities would be represented by distinct fortifications and towers in addition to their names, and the empty spaces would be filled with mythical creatures.
Gallery
Image:Beatus map.jpg|The world map from the Saint-Sever Beatus, dating to ca. AD 1050.
Image:Diagrammatic T-O world map - 12th c.jpg|From a 12th c. copy of Etymologiae.
Image:Radkarte MKL1888.png
Image:T-O Mappa mundi.jpg|Mappa Mundi in La Fleur des Histoires. 1459-1463.
Image:1581 Bunting clover leaf map.jpg|Bünting clover leaf map. A 1581 woodcut, Magdeburg. Jerusalem is in the center, surrounded by Europe, Asia and Africa.
Image:Orthographic T&O.png|A "T-O" map made with modern cartography.
Further Information
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