The Origins, History, Value, and Future of Cartography

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Cartography has existed for thousands of years. From the early days of tribes marking off where their best hunting grounds are, to the modern day of mapping flight paths, cartography has evolved and developed in various ways to what it is today. There are now technologies that allow for people to design maps in ways never imagined before. Computer programmes exist that allow for different types of data to be stored so that accurate representations can be formed. It has been said that, “Maps are pictures of the world’s land surface, showing its features, resources and the way it has been developed.” (Bondi, et al., 1977)

Origins and History

The beginnings of Cartography

It has been said that Cartography originated thousands of years ago. Wall paintings believed to represent a maps of the heavens exist all around the world. The oldest maps that have been preserved on Babylonian clay tablets are from around 2300 B.C. Cartography as a whole was dominant in Greece as the subject was more advanced than other locations and so the spherical Earth was well known amongst Greek philosophers. (Aber, 2008). The reference-line principle was created by one of Aristotle’s disciples. Dichaearchus was this disciple’s name and he obtained this theory by placing an orientation line that ran from east to west. (Fuechsel, 2013)

The Roman Era is the next part of history where Cartography was involved in. Maps in this time were created from military routes and were constructed using more practical methods than the mathematical method employed by the Greeks. The Middle Ages soon followed this era, and Cartography as a whole did not develop a great amount further during these times. The church was said to be responsible for this as they based their...

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