A spectacular map of the utmost curiosity and unparalleled cartographic coolness, this is Franz Ritter's untitled 1640 map of the world on a polar gnomonic projection – often referred to as the 'Sundial Map.' Projected from the North Pole, Ritter's map covers about three fourths of the sphere, extending south as far as Patagonia and southern Madagascar, both of which run off the map. The continents appear wildly distorted by common convention due to the map's unusual projection, in which the scale adjusts according to distance from the North Pole. Consequently, the further a landmass is from the North Pole, the larger it appears. Here, the continents of the Southern Hemisphere, Africa and South America, dominate the page. Although strange to our eye, the projection is on sound mathematical footing. https://www.geographicus.com/P/AntiqueMap/sundialmap-ritter-1640. #strangemaps #raremaps #antiquemap #geographicus #raremap #antiquemaps (at Geographicus Rare Antique Maps)
