--- Begin Forwarded Message --- Date: Tue, 06 Jul 1999 10:43:49 -0700 From: [log in to unmask] Subject: FYI: LC NDLP: "Mapping the National Parks" Sender: [log in to unmask] > >LC National Digital Library Program announces >the release of "Mapping the National Parks" > > >The Library of Congress National Digital Library Program and the >Geography and Map Division of the Library of Congress are pleased to >announce a new collection to be added to the American Memory historical >collections. Mapping the National Parks, which can be found at the >following URL: > >http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/gmdhtml/nphtml/nphome.html > >provides users with information about the history, cultural aspects and >geological formations of the areas that became Acadia, Great Smokey >Mountain, Grand Canyon and Yellowstone National Parks. The 200 maps >that comprise this collection date from the 17th Century to the current >day and provide samples of early mapping practices as well as >information on the areas that would become the parks themselves. Each >park has a Special Presentation, which provides additional information >about each park and provides examples of the kinds of maps available for >study. Of special interest are the nautical charts that are a part of >the Acadia National Park Special Presentation. These nautical charts >not only document the shore and water areas that are a part of Acadia >National Park; they also document the importance of the water as a >source of transportation and commerce for the area.=20 > >Also of interest are the maps of the Grand Canyon that can be accessed >by clicking the image on the site's home page. These maps not only >provide detailed information about the Grand Canyon but also glorious >views of various scenes from the Canyon, many of which can also be >accessed from the Evolution of the Conservation Movement collection, >which is also part of American Memory. The Rockefeller Foundation >provided funding for the Mapping the National Parks collection. > >In addition to this new collection, the Geography and Map Division has >added two new special maps to its current online collections. A special >presentation about the 1562 Map of America by Diego Guti=E9rrez has been >added to the Discovery and Exploration Maps collection >http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/gmdhtml/dsxphome.html >Guti=E9rrez, a noted cosmographer from the firm Casa de la Contrataci=F3n= >, >collaborated with Hieronymous Cock, a noted engraver from Antwerp, to >create a map of the Americas, what was then considered the fourth part >of the world. At the time it was the largest engraved map of the >Americas and presently only two copies of this map survive, one here at >the Library of Congress; the other at the British Library. This richly >illustrated map provides a view of an America filled with images and >names that had been popularized in Europe following Columbus's 1492 >voyage of discovery. Images of parrots, monkeys, mermaids, fearsome sea >creatures, Patagonian giants, and an erupting volcano in central Mexico >complement the numerous settlements, rivers, mountains, and capes named. > This map correctly identifies the location of the Amazon River and many >other bodies of water in South America. The map also identified various >land areas in the Southwestern United States and in Central America. > >The final addition to the online map collections is the 1570 Theatrum >Orbis Terrarum (Theater of the World) by Abraham Ortelius, (1527-1598), >a Dutch Scholar and geographer. This atlas has been added to the >special presentation on atlases in the General Map Collections >http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/gmdhtml/gnrlhome.html >Theatrum Orbis Terrarum is considered the first true atlas in the modern >sense: a collection of uniform map sheets and sustaining text bound to >form a book for which copper printing plates were specifically engraved. >More than an original concept, the Theatrum was also the most >authoritative and successful such work during the late sixteenth and >early seventeenth centuries. Because it was frequently revised to >reflect new geographical and historical insights, contemporary scholars >in Western Europe praised the Theatrum highly for its accuracy .The >Theatrum atlas first appeared in 1570 and continued to be published >until 1612. During this period, over seventy-three hundred copies were >printed in thirty-one editions and seven different languages-a >remarkable figure for the time. Many of his atlas's maps were based upon >sources that no longer exist or are extremely rare. In addition, >Ortelius included a listed of contemporary cartographers who served as >sources in the creation of this atlas. Without this many of these >cartographers would otherwise have remained unknown. > >Patrons who wish to just view the plates from the Ortelius Atlas can >click on the words "maps only" and view the beautifully colored and >designed maps that are a part of the atlas. Areas included in this atlas >include Africa, Germany, Greece, Early India and Spain. > >For further information about these collections please contact the >Geography and Map Division at 202-707-MAPS (6277). > > >****************************************************************** >Who's who in the world of library automation? The industry leaders >can be found in the Sun Microsystems' Library Solutions Portfolio: > > http://www.sun.com/edu/libraries/ > >****************************************************************** > --- End Forwarded Message ---