Kaart van de Catalaanse kust, ca. 1702 1702 - 1703

Editor: This drawing from around 1702 shows a map of the Catalan coast. It's ink and engraving on paper, attributed to an anonymous artist. I find something incredibly calming about these old maps, even though I’m sure navigating by them was anything but! What jumps out at you when you look at it? Curator: Oh, I resonate with that calming sentiment completely! Maps like this are time capsules. Forget GPS, imagine life depending on that compass rose and the careful hand of the cartographer. Look at the level of detail etched into the coastlines. Do you think of how this detailed focus and that precision might have reflected the culture of the period? It speaks to me of ambition, of mastering the known world… or at least trying to! I wonder, do you find anything about the emptiness in the image to suggest this period might also harbor an unknown world yet to discover? Editor: Absolutely. I mean, seeing ‘Mer Mediterranee’ there written, you’re thinking of this huge unknown expanse! What do you think about how the composition with the blank spaces, makes this feel almost dream-like? Curator: That's a lovely point. The "blank spaces" – we call them *terra incognita*, unmapped territory. Maybe they’re not empty at all, but teeming with possibility and, dare I say, a touch of fear. Remember, for every port marked on this map, there were countless sailors facing storms, pirates, and the abyss. Maps don’t just chart locations; they chart dreams and nightmares too! It makes me question how we create our own mental maps today. Is technology making us lose that sense of adventure? Editor: That's an interesting way to consider our relationship with modern mapmaking. It’s a contrast between adventure versus something almost robotic! Thank you; I have some exciting ideas now! Curator: Likewise! These old cartographies always chart new courses in our thoughts too!