2017 Antique Maps Wall Calendar

Kings, mariners, and merchants needed to know what lay beyond the horizon. Enter the cartographers, who turned reports from returning explorers into useful maps. In the fifteenth to seventeenth centuries, the great Age of Discovery, these artisans helped Europeans span the globe and connect civilizations. The twelve maps shown here epitomize centuries of mapmaking greats such as Gerardus Mercator, Abraham Ortelius, and Olaus Magnusa few lesser-known cartographers, and one pirate (Guillaume Le Testu) for good measure.