The map showing the two hemispheres of the world in the Hunterian collection was designed for the Second Qing Emperor of China, Kangxi (1662-1722) by the Jesuit Father Ferdinand Verbiest (1623-88 ...

Flat maps, designed to offer a consistent representation of Earth, reveal inaccuracies in countries' sizing. Some nations near the Poles appear significantly larger than they truly are ...

It was more primordial: to help the map-holder grasp the idea of the whole world, with himself at the center. “There was something almost talismanic, I think, about having the world in your hand ...