A Sense of Place: Cartography from the Collection

North Wing Corridor
Open Through June 25, 2017

This exhibition brings to light some of the many historic maps in the MOAS collection. From Europe, Asia, South America, and the United States, examples from over 500 years of mapmaking are included showing mankind's long desire to chart "a sense of place" for itself on the planet. Whether it was to help guide nomadic peoples or later to define borders, maps have played an important role in human culture and history. Some of the earliest examples that still exist came from the Babylonians who drew maps on clay tablets, some of which have been dated to around 2300 BC. Today we use GPS and Google Maps as computers and satellite imaging have made mapping more accurate than ever. However, hundreds of years of advancements in cartography were necessary to bring us to where we are now and this exhibition highlights this ancient art through antique maps from around the world.