Description
David Rumsey's collection of historical maps is one of the largest and most complete of its kind. Focused for the most part on North and South America in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, the collection is comprised of more than 150,000 items: maps, atlases, and contextual supporting documents. Unlike similar collections, the delicacy and rarity of which necessitate careful storage and restricted-use policies, The Rumsey Collection is available in growing numbers on the Web - and it is this conjunction of old and new technologies that is the heart of Cartographica Extraordinaire.
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"Assembling some of the finest cartographic examples from the private collection of renowned map collector David Rumsey, this atlas bridges the gap between historical cartography and exploration and the new technologies and applications of geographic information systems (GIS). More than a lavish collection of cartographic masterworks, this book tells two parallel stories that weave through the fabric of the ages. The first story lays out the relevant history, the human players, and the events that place each map in the context of the time in which it was created. The second thread, of particular interest to cartographers, designers, map lovers, and geographers, tells the stories of the maps themselves—how they were created and the lessons they can teach modern cartographers and other designers of information and visual communication. Included are examples of sophisticated juxtapositions of historical maps and current geographic information, such as using modern computers to “drape” 1910 San Francisco over a 3D model of the actual terrain found on the peninsula, creating a map that is at once stunningly beautiful and rich with old and new information."
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