A map is a simplified depiction of a space, a navigational aid which highlights relations between objects within that space. Most usually a map is a two-dimensional, geometrically accurate representation of a three-dimensional space. The science and art of map-making is cartography; see that page for further discussion of the history of maps and map-making.
Map-making dates back to the Stone Age and appears to predate written language by several millennia. One of the oldest surviving maps is painted on a wall of the Catal Huyuk settlement in south-central Anatolia (now Turkey); it dates from about 6200 BC.
While we tend to think of maps today as products of a rationalistic, scientific world-view, maps also have a mythic quality. Pre-modern maps, and mapping traditions outside the Western tradition, often merge geography with non-scientific cosmography, showing the relationship of the viewer to the universe. Medieval "T-O" maps, for example, show Jerusalem at the centre of the world, and in some cases related the "body" of the Earth to the body of Christ. By contrast, navigational (or "Portolan") charts of the Mediterranean from the same period are remarkably accurate. Even today, maps can be powerful rhetorical tools beyond their purely practical value, and this has been the source of much fruitful map criticism over the last twenty years, notably in the works of J.B. Harley, Mark Monmonier, and Denis Wood.
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GeoGraphics - Provides custom maps, drawings, and technical illustrations. Provides links to publications and images.
Meta Description: [ GeoGrafx: Maps and Graphics. Freelance cartographer and multimedia content provider. ]
Geologic Data Systems - Works with petroleum companies to make precise geological maps.
Geology of Greenland Map Series - Geological survey of Denmark and Greenland. All maps are compiled on CD.
Meta Description: [ Geological maps of Greenland on CD-ROM, The 1:500 00 geological maps of Greenland on CD-ROM consist of 11 out of 14 planned maps. A descriptive text is included for five of these maps. GEUS, Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland ]
USGS NAWQA Digital Maps - National Water-Quality Assessment provides digital maps for a variety of themes.
Meta Description: [ Digital map page for National Water-Quality Assessment -NAWQA- Program
of the U.S. Geological Survey ]
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