Innovations in Medieval Mapmaking

People in the Middle Ages greatly lacked geographical knowledge. While they were aware of the existence of distant places like China and sub-Saharan Africa, their knowledge was largely based on the scanty information found in ancient texts, which were notoriously inaccurate. What is more, medieval scholars saw a theological significance in the natural world in which everything was designed according to a harmonious model set in place by God. Thus geographical accuracy did not matter as much as symbolic importance. This is most evident in the so-called T and O maps that conceived of the world as divided into Asia, Africa, and Europe. The number three corresponded with the Trinity and was also backed by the Biblical story of Noah's three sons who scattered and repopulated the world after the Flood.

In the later Middle Ages, as new navigational technology came to Europe from the Arab world and seagoing trade was recognized as an important source of revenue for centralizing states, there was a greater emphasis on geographical accuracy. This site has a zoomable image of a "Portolian Chart", which is an ancestor of modern navigational maps. You will see much greater accuracy of the shape of the coastlines along with the names of the towns and cities that dotted them. This map is also remarkable for the detail of the western coast of Africa, although it still exposes some important gaps in the medieval knowledge of the world (notice the Nile River).

This new form of mapmaking does not mean that people of the Middle Ages were entirely ignorant of the layout of the world around them. They knew that the neat division of the world into three parts was an oversimplification. What this reveals is a shift in attitudes towards the world around, where it was no longer just a form of theological instruction.

The Bayeaux Tapestry Online

The Bayeaux Tapestry is one of the iconic artifacts of the medieval era. Even people who aren't specifically familiar with it would have likely seen sections of it on book covers or in documentaries. It is 230 foot lone embroidered sheet of linen that depicts the events leading up to the Norman Conquest of England in 1066. It is best described as a type of comic strip or story board, with individual panels showing a particular event or episode. Before modern times it was kept at the Bayeaux Cathedral in Normandy (hence its name) and hung during local festivals. It was only in the 19th century when scholars from outside the region began to appreciate its historical value.

Apart from being a priceless example of medieval craftsmanship, the Tapestry is a piece of political propaganda. Clearly this is a case of history being written by the winners (it is believed that William's half-brother Odo, commissioned the tapestry to represent William's version of events). His claim to the English throne was by no means indisputable and after the Conquest he had to forcefully subjugate a resentful Anglo-Saxon elite, many who had lost their lands and power. Harold, whose death at the Battle of Hastings opened the way to William's reign, is depicted as an oath-breaker. This Tapestry is also famous for depicting Haley's Comet, which was visible around the time of the conquest. In the Middle Ages such celestial phenomena were viewed as supernatural portents, the falling star predicting the fall of a monarch, in this case Harold.

Because of its great length, the Tapestry is notoriously difficult to reproduce in media. When one narrows in to the details of a particular scene they lose perspective of the monumental length of the Tapestry as a whole (think of the letterbox format for a DVD). This site has a scrollable image of the entire Tapestry along with the Latin inscriptions, offering both a detailed view of the individual scenes as well as a perspective of the magnitude of the work as a whole.