On the cover this month
Abraham Ortelius (1527-1598)
Indiae orientalis insularumque adiacientium typus
India, the orient and adjacent islands, included in Ortelius' atlas,
Theatrum Orbis Terrarum
hand-coloured engraving; 32.7 x 47.6 cm
Antwerp: Ortelius, 1570
Maps Collection,
nla.map-t937
Maps
are complex and frequently enigmatic objects. Sixteenth- and
seventeenth-century maps were prized not only for the information they
contained but also for their beauty, and the cartographers of the day
often filled uncharted blank spaces with cartouches, decorations and
imaginary or rumoured lands. In this map, the Great South Land or Terra
Australis ('Beach pars continentis Australis') is shown emerging below
Java, and depictions of sea monsters, ships and inscriptions abound.
Discover the pleasures and mysteries of old maps in the story on page 3.
August 2006 Volume XVI Number 11
THE MISCRAFT OF MAPMAKERS
Avan Stallard, one of this year’s Norman McCann Summer Scholars, delves into the imaginative and flawed world of mapmaking and explains why he’s addicted for life
THE ULTIMATE TRIP
Agnieszka Sobocinska, a Norman McCann Summer Scholar for 2006, reflects on the revolutionary and highly fashionable hippie trail of the 1970s
A FANATIC HEART
Dunya Lindsey, a Norman McCann Summer Scholar for 2006, reveals the tragic tale of rebellious Irish convict Patrick O'Donohoe
A DIFFERENT SHADE OF WHITE
Georgia Sheills, a Norman McCann Summer Scholar for 2006, investigates the hostile response to Italian migrants, or 'white aliens', in interwar Australia
EXPLORING THE WATERWAYS
Judy Cannon reveals the flamboyant life of Captain Francis Cadell who pioneered transport on the Murray River
FRIENDS
A regular news page about the activities of the Friends of the National Library of Australia
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