Courses

How do maps construct, rather than represent, territories, identities, pathways, and temporalities? From esoteric personifications of the continents to portolan nautical charts, this seminar investigates maps of the Mediterranean Sea and its borderlands from 1300-1700. We will probe cartographic visualization systems to understand what kinds of perspectives and orientations specific maps presumed, invited, or denied. Topics include port city commerce, wayfinding and navigation, the rise of Mercator's projection, and mapping shifting boundaries. At the heart of this course is the Mediterranean itself, which we will trace west with colonial expeditions beyond the present-day strait of Gibraltar.