Ptolemy's Geography in the Renaissance

Zur Shalev
University of London Press
2011-05-01

<p>The rediscovery of Ptolemy’s <em>Geography</em> has long been hailed as a key moment in the emergence of Renaissance culture, symbolizing a new rational spatiality, and preparing the way for the Age of Discovery. And yet, the process of the <em>Geography</em>’s introduction, integration and impact in western Europe, as the essays in this volume collectively suggest, was more complex and less predictable than has been traditionally assumed. Whereas previously Ptolemy’s maps attracted most scholarly attention, in this volume the textual tradition of the<em> Geography</em> – Ptolemy’s text, added prefaces, annotations and treatises – stand at the centre. Bringing together a wealth of previously unexplored sources and contexts, the essays examine the <em>Geography</em> as it took part in and influenced diverse areas of Renaissance culture, such as visual theory and communication, humanistic philological, historical and antiquarian practices, astrology, education and religion. The emerging <em>Geography</em> is perhaps less revolutionary but more satisfyingly embedded into the culture that produced and used it. This volume points to new directions for the study of the remaining questions that still hover around Ptolemy’s seminal work and for the study of early modern geography as a whole.</p>

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Keywords

  • c 1000 CE to c 1500
  • Early modern history: c 1450/1500 to c 1700
  • Historical geography
  • European history: Renaissance
  • Historical geography
  • c 1000 CE to c 1500
  • c 1500 onwards to present day
  • History and Archaeology
  • Historical geography
  • History ⇒ Social and Cultural History

Ptolemy's Geography in the Renaissance

Zur Shalev

University of London Press

2011-05-01

<p>The rediscovery of Ptolemy’s <em>Geography</em> has long been hailed as a key moment in the emergence of Renaissance culture, symbolizing a new rational spatiality, and preparing the way for the Age of Discovery. And yet, the process of the <em>Geography</em>’s introduction, integration and impact in western Europe, as the essays in this volume collectively suggest, was more complex and less predictable than has been traditionally assumed. Whereas previously Ptolemy’s maps attracted most scholarly attention, in this volume the textual tradition of the<em> Geography</em> – Ptolemy’s text, added prefaces, annotations and treatises – stand at the centre. Bringing together a wealth of previously unexplored sources and contexts, the essays examine the <em>Geography</em> as it took part in and influenced diverse areas of Renaissance culture, such as visual theory and communication, humanistic philological, historical and antiquarian practices, astrology, education and religion. The emerging <em>Geography</em> is perhaps less revolutionary but more satisfyingly embedded into the culture that produced and used it. This volume points to new directions for the study of the remaining questions that still hover around Ptolemy’s seminal work and for the study of early modern geography as a whole.</p>

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Included in Packages

Topics

  • c 1000 CE to c 1500
  • Early modern history: c 1450/1500 to c 1700
  • Historical geography
  • European history: Renaissance
  • Historical geography
  • c 1000 CE to c 1500
  • c 1500 onwards to present day
  • History and Archaeology
  • Historical geography
  • History ⇒ Social and Cultural History