fantasy cartography

The roots of the history of fantasy cartography are shared with the independent histories of both cartography and fantasy as well as the general history of the visualization of ideas.{{Cite book |last=Ekman |first=Stefan |title=Here Be Dragons: Exploring Fantasy Maps and Settings |publisher=Wesleyan University Press |year=2013 |location=Middleton, CT |pages=1–13 |language=English |chapter=Introduction}}

Cartographers of the Middle Ages did not see their profession as purely making accurate representations of geography. Often their maps were crafted as much as works of art as tools for navigating, incorporating imagery and symbolism from mythology, folklore and fantasy stories.

An early example of cartography created without intending to present a geographical reality is Dante's Hell. By the late fifteenth century, numerous illustrations inspired by Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy had been published based on descriptions from the text. Dante's Hell has continued to be the subject of fantasy cartographers for centuries.{{Cite book |last=Padron |first=Ricardo |title=Map: Finding Our Place in the World |publisher=University of Chicago Press |year=2007 |editor-last=Akerman |editor-first=James R. |location=Chicago |pages=261–62 |language=English |chapter=Mapping Imaginary Worlds |editor-last2=Karrow Jr. |editor-first2=Robert W.}}

In 1516, Thomas More published his Utopia accompanied by a map of the island.{{Cite journal |last=Paniotova |first=Taissia Sergeevna |year=2016 |title=The Real and The Fantastic in Utopia by Thomas More |url=http://vallajournal.com/journal/index.php/valla/article/view/73 |journal=Valla |volume=2 |issue=4–5 |pages=48–54 |issn=2412-9674}} This map inspired artistic cartographers over the sixteenth century to iterate the original.{{Cite web |last=Silver |first=Andrew |title=Math Maps the Island in Thomas More's 'Utopia' |url=https://www.insidescience.org/news/math-maps-island-thomas-mores-utopia |access-date=27 May 2022 |website=Inside Science}}

{{multiple image

| width =

| footer = Examples of Fantasy Maps from the Middle Ages

| image1 = Stradano Inferno Map Lower.jpg

| alt1 =

| caption1 = Stradanus' Map of Dante's Lower Inferno

| image2 = Isola di Utopia Moro.jpg

| alt2 =

| caption2 = The Island of More's Utopia

| align = center

| image3 = Utopia Woodcut (Holbein, 1518) (cropped).jpg

| image4 = Utopia.ortelius.jpg

| caption4 = Abraham Ortelius's map of More's Utopia

| caption3 = Ambrosius Holbein's woodcut print Map of Utopia

}}

In the latter half of the 16th century the Bible began to be printed with internal maps as a product of the Protestant movement and the Geneva reforms. This may have contributed to the increased popularity of text-accompanying maps and stirred the public imagination towards producing maps for fiction.{{Cite journal |last=Ingram |first=Elizabeth |date=1993 |title=Maps as Reader's Aids: Maps and Plans in Geneva Bibles |journal=Imago Mundi |volume=45 |pages=29–44|doi=10.1080/03085699308592762 }}

Fiction inspired by the Age of Discovery and the Age of Enlightenment also brought with it a romanticization of explorative cartography and surveying. Several classic stories from the era included maps as an important element of the reader's experience. Among the most popular of these map-accompanied fictional texts from the time are Jonathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels (1726){{Cite book |last=Case |first=Arthur E. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FvigwgEACAAJ |title=Four Essays on Gulliver's Travels |publisher=Princeton University Press |year=1945 |location=Princeton |chapter=The Geography and Chronology of Gulliver's Travels}} and Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island (1883).

{{Multiple image

| image1 = Bowyer Bible Volume 2 Print 340. Map of the Bible Lands. Genesis. Anonymous.png

| caption1 = 'Map of the Bible Lands' from Volume 2 of the Bowyer Bible

| image2 = The works of Dr. Jonathan Swift, Dean of St Fleuron T052750-3.png

| caption2 = The Island Laputa from Dr. Jonathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels

| image3 = Treasure-island-map.jpg

| caption3 = A Map of Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island

| align = center

}}John Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress (1678) included both "A Mapp Shewing the Order & Causes of Salvation and Damnation" and "The Road from the City of Destruction to the Eternal City."{{Cite web |last=Mode |first=PJ |title=A Plan of the Road From the City of Destruction to the Celestial City, Adapted to The Pilgrim's Progress |url=https://digital.library.cornell.edu/catalog/ss:3293746 |access-date=24 May 2022 |website=Cornell University Library |series=1057.01 & 1038.01 |publisher=Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections |type=PJ Mode's collection of persuasive cartography}}

The most influential fantasy cartographer is J. R. R. Tolkien, whose maps of Middle-earth prefacing The Lord of the Rings have been called "the most influential example to date," one that "encouraged other writers and their publishers to include cartographic images."{{Cite book |last=Haft |first=Adele |title=The History of Cartography 6 vols. |publisher=University of Chicago Press |year=2015 |editor-last=Monmonier |editor-first=Mark |volume=Cartography in the 20th Century |location=Chicago |pages=6:782 |chapter=Literature and Cartography}} In his book Here Be Dragons: Exploring Fantasy Maps and Settings, Ekman says, "In modern fantasy, especially high fantasy, maps are considered common enough to be almost obligatory, mainly because of the maps J. R. R. Tolkien included in The Lord of the Rings (1954–55)."{{Cite book |last=Ekman |first=Stefan |title=Here Be Dragons: Exploring Fantasy Maps and Settings |publisher=Wesleyan University Press |year=2013 |location=Middleton, CT |pages=22–23 |language=English}}

Before Tolkien, another text that brought fantastic worlds into the zeitgeist was The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900) written by L. Frank Baum and the corresponding 1939 musical fantasy film The Wizard of Oz. The world of Oz was mapped by Baum in 1914.{{Cite web |last=Maxine |first=David |date=2 April 2012 |title=Map of Oz Monday |url=http://hungrytigerpress.blogspot.com/2012/04/map-of-oz-monday-1914-map-of-oz_02.html?m=1 |access-date=27 May 2022 |website=Hungry Tiger Talk}}

{{Multi image

| image1 = Map-of-Oz.jpg

| caption1 = The Map of Oz

| image2 = Oz-and-surrounding-countrie.jpg

| caption2 = Map of Oz and the countries surrounding it across the deserts (Note: East and West are reversed)

| align = center

}}

There are many types of maps within cartographic fantasy which can be classified by genre, scope and purpose.

Fantasy maps can be categorized based on genre. These genre classifications inform what kind of aesthetic, style and scope the map presents.

{{Main article|Fantasy}}

File:Rhovanion.jpg region Rhovanion]]

Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving magical elements,Diana Waggoner, The Hills of Faraway: A Guide to Fantasy, p 10, 0-689-10846-X typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore.John Grant and John Clute, The Encyclopedia of Fantasy, "Fantasy", p 338 {{ISBN|0-312-19869-8}} Fantasy is distinguished from the genres of science fiction and horror by the respective absence of scientific or macabre themes, although these genres can overlap. In popular culture, the fantasy genre predominantly features maps and settings that emulate Earth, but with a sense of otherness.{{Cite book |last=G. |first=Saricks, Joyce |url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/46769544 |title=The readers' advisory guide to genre fiction |date=2001 |publisher=American Library Association |isbn=0-8389-0803-9 |pages=36–60 |oclc=46769544}} Maps created in this genre reflect these concepts.

{{Main article|Science fiction}}

Science fiction is a genre of speculative fiction that typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel universes, and extraterrestrial life. It has been called the "literature of ideas", and it often explores the potential consequences of scientific, social, and technological innovations. Maps created in this genre reflect these concepts.

Under the genre umbrellas of Fantasy and Science fiction exist many subgenres. Included here are brief introductions to the subgenres that more often exhibit maps.

{{See also|fantasy subgenres}}

{{Main article|High fantasy}}

High fantasy, or epic fantasy, is a subgenre of fantasy{{cite web |date=11 May 2011 |title=Defining the Genre: High Fantasy |url=http://fandomania.com/defining-the-genre-high-fantasy/ |access-date=8 August 2016 |work=fandomania |quote="High Fantasy is probably one of the most recognizable subgenres of Fantasy."}} defined by the epic nature of its setting or by the epic stature of its characters, themes or plot.Brian Stableford, The A to Z of Fantasy Literature, (p. 198), Scarecrow Press, Plymouth. 2005. {{ISBN|0-8108-6829-6}}

{{Main article|Historical fantasy}}

Historical fantasy is a subgenre of fantasy and genre of historical fiction that incorporates fantastic elements (such as magic) into a more "realistic" or historical narrative.{{cite book |last=Schanoes |first=Veronica |author-link=Veronica Schanoes |title=The Cambridge Companion to Fantasy Literature |date=26 January 2012 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-42959-7 |editor1-last=James |editor1-first=Edward |editor1-link=Edward James (historian) |page=236 |chapter=Historical Fantasy |access-date=9 May 2013 |editor2-last=Mendlesohn |editor2-first=Farah |editor2-link=Farah Mendlesohn |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vR71BRGgLzIC&pg=PA236}} There is much crossover with other subgenres of fantasy; those classed as Arthurian, Celtic, or Dark Ages could just as easily be placed in historical fantasy.Sinclair Frances, "Historical Fantasy", Riveting Reads plus Fantasy Fiction (UK: School Library Association), 69. Stories fitting this classification generally take place prior to the 20th century.

{{Main article|Heroic fantasy}}

Heroic fantasy is a subgenre of fantasy in which events occur in a world where magic is prevalent and modern technology is non-existent. The setting may be entirely fictitious in nature or based upon earth with some additions. Unlike dark fiction, it provides a setting in which "all men are strong, all women beautiful, all life adventurous, and all problems simple".L. Sprague de Camp, Introduction of Swords and Sorcery, 1963, p. 7. This means that adventures based in heroic fantasy are unlikely to mention any wider problems that cannot be fixed by a quest.

{{See also|Subgenre of science fiction}}

{{Main article|Steampunk}}

Steampunk is a subgenre of science fiction that incorporates retrofuturistic technology and aesthetics inspired by 19th-century industrial steam-powered machinery.{{cite web |title=Definition of steampunk |url=http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/steampunk |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120724014252/http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/steampunk |url-status=dead |archive-date=24 July 2012 |access-date=6 October 2012 |publisher=Oxford University Press}} Steampunk works are often set in an alternative history of the Victorian era or the American "Wild West", where steam power remains in mainstream use, or in a fantasy world that similarly employs steam power.{{cite book |last=Latham |first=Rob |title=The Oxford Handbook of Science Fiction |year=2014 |isbn=9780199838844 |page=439}}{{cite web |date=25 September 2017 |title=What Is Steampunk All About? {{!}} Gear Gadgets and Gizmos |url=https://geargadgetsandgizmos.com/what-is-steampunk-all-about/ |access-date=23 February 2020 |website=www.geargadgetsandgizmos.com/}}

{{Main article|Cyberpunk}}

Cyberpunk is a subgenre of science fiction in a dystopian futuristic setting that tends to focus on a "combination of lowlife and high tech",Sterling, Bruce. Preface. Burning Chrome, by William Gibson, Harper Collins, 1986, p. xiv. featuring futuristic technological and scientific achievements, such as artificial intelligence and cybernetics, juxtaposed with societal collapse or decay.Thomas Michaud, "Science fiction and politics: Cyberpunk science fiction as political philosophy", pp. 65–77 in {{cite book |last=Hassler |first=Donald M. |title=New Boundaries in Political Science Fiction |publisher=University of South Carolina Press |year=2008 |isbn=978-1-57003-736-8}} See pp. 75–76.

{{Main article|Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction}}

Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction is a subgenre of science fiction among others, in which the Earth's (or another planet's) civilization is collapsing or has collapsed. The apocalypse event may be climatic, such as runaway climate change; astronomical, such as an impact event; destructive, such as nuclear holocaust or resource depletion; medical, such as a pandemic, whether natural or human-caused; end time, such as the Last Judgment, Second Coming or Ragnarök; or more imaginative, such as a zombie apocalypse, cybernetic revolt, technological singularity, dysgenics or alien invasion.{{Cite web |last=Blakeley |first=Sasha |date=17 June 2021 |title=Post-Apocalyptic Literature |url=https://study.com/learn/lesson/post-apocalyptic-books.html |access-date=27 May 2022 |website=Study.com}}

Fantasy maps can be categorized based on scope. Scope informs how, and how much, information is displayed in the map.

• Local (City and town maps) File:1575 bird's-eye map of the city of Alexandria.tif
• GeographicalFile:1924 fantasy pictorial map - Pirate Island.jpg fantasy map of "Pirate Island" by Gilbert Anthony Pownall, published in London in 1924|none]]
• Planetary File:T and O map Guntherus Ziner 1472.jpg (map of the known world) from the first printed version of Isidorus's Etymologiae]]
• GalacticFile:Galactic Quadrant Star Trek.png
• CosmologicalFile:1660 celestial map illustrating Claudius Ptolemy's model of the Universe.jpg

Fantasy maps can be categorized based on intended purpose. These classifications reflect the creator's aim and inform the way the map is crafted.

Conceptual maps are cartographic visualizations of ideas and concepts. These maps do not attempt to correspond to anything physically real but are instead meant to display an idea in a cartographic medium. Matthaus Seutter's The Attack of Love is an example of a battle map used as an allegory for winning someone in love.

{{Multiple image

| image1 = Seutter, The Attack of Love, 1730, Cornell CUL PJM 1020 01.jpg

| caption1 = Matthaus Seutter's The Attack of Love

| image2 = A Map of Womans Heart.jpg

| caption2 = A Map of Woman's Heart

| align = center

| image3 = A pictorial map of loveland, by Ernest Dudley Chase, c. 1943, from the Digital Commonwealth - commonwealth st74cw28p.jpg

| caption3 = Ernest Dudley Chase's A Pictorial Map of Loveland

}}

Hypothetical maps are maps that present geography in alternate history scenarios. Melissa Gould created an alternate-history map of New York City in a hypothetical world where Nazi Germany won World War II.{{Cite web |last=Lucarelli |first=Fosco |date=7 November 2011 |title=NEU-YORK, a psycho-geographical cartography of alternate history |url=https://socks-studio.com/2011/11/07/neu-york-a-psycho-geographical-cartography-of-alternate-history/ |website=SOCKS}}

Fantasy maps are often used by creators to convey a perspective. For this reason, they are depicted to be created by an in-world character or organisation. This is a useful tool for authors or worldbuilders as the map can act as a character within the story. They can be erroneous, time-specific or prejudiced much like a regular character or an unreliable narrator.{{Cite journal |last=Harley |first=John Brian |date=1989 |title=Deconstructing the map |url=https://quod.lib.umich.edu/p/passages/4761530.0003.008/--deconstructing-the-map?rgn=main;view=fulltext |journal=Cartographica |volume=26 |issue=2 |pages=1–20|doi=10.3138/E635-7827-1757-9T53 }}

In the same way that creatives can use maps to convey perspective, mankind has done the same in history. Sebastian Munster's Europa Regina is a good example of this – a map design that presents Europe as a majestic queen.{{Cite web |last=Jacobs |first=Frank |date=10 July 2010 |title=A Curious Map Showing Europe as a Queen |url=https://bigthink.com/strange-maps/141-europe-as-a-queen/ |access-date=27 June 2022 |website=Big Think}}

File:Europe As A Queen Sebastian Munster 1570.jpg

Fantasy maps can be used as cartographic aids to teach or simulate situations. In the Cold War, a U.S Army cryptologist Lambros D. Callimahos developed a training exercise war game for code-breakers simulating the invasion of Cuba.{{Cite web |title=1960 Callimahos Top Secret Maps of the Republic of Zendia |url=https://www.geographicus.com/P/AntiqueMap/ZendiaProblem-callimahos-1960 |website=Geographicus}}{{Cite journal |last=Varga |first=Charles |date=2017 |title=Is Zendia the Isle of Pines? |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01611194.2017.1327698?journalCode=ucry20 |journal=Cryptologia |volume=41 |issue=4 |pages=388–394 |doi=10.1080/01611194.2017.1327698 |s2cid=34425684 |via=}} In this program the fantasy 'Republic of Zendia' was created with its northern and central province 'Loreno' mapped as cartographic references used in these exercises. These fantasy maps have now been declassified and released to the public domain by the U.S. Military.

{{Multiple image

| image1 = ZendiaProblem-callimahos-1960.jpg

| caption1 = The Republic of Zendia

| align = center

| image2 = The Central Part of The Province of Loreno.jpg

| caption2 = The Central Part of The Province of Loreno

| image3 = The Northern Part of The Province of Loreno.jpg

| caption3 = The Northern Part of The Province of Loreno

| header = A set of declassified fantasy maps used in training by U.S Army code-breakers in the Cold War

}}

Although popularized in novels, fantasy maps are now created and presented across various media such as television shows,{{Cite web |last=Houghton |first=David |date=26 August 2017 |title=The Evolution of Game of Thrones' Title Sequence – from basic map, to a deceptively deep part of the show's journey |url=https://www.gamesradar.com/the-evolution-of-game-of-thrones-title-sequence-from-basic-map-to-a-deceptively-deep-part-of-the-shows-journey/ |website=Gamesradar}} movies,{{Cite book |last1=Platt |first1=Richard |title=Pirates of The Caribbean: The Complete Visual Guide |last2=Dakin |first2=Glenn |publisher=Dorling Kindersley |year=2007 |isbn=9781405320061 |pages=86–87 |language=English |chapter=Sao Feng's Map}} video games,{{Cite journal |last1=Horbinski |first1=Tymoteusz |last2=Zagata |first2=Krysztof |date=2022 |title=View of Cartography in Video Games: Literature Review and Examples of Specific Solutions |journal=Journal of Cartography and Geographic Information |volume=72 |pages=104–8}}{{Cite journal |last1=Horbinski |first1=Tymoteusz |last2=Zagata |first2=Krysztof |date=2021 |title=Map Symbols in Video Games |journal=Journal of Cartography and Geographic Information |volume=71 |pages=269–283|doi=10.1007/s42489-021-00085-0 |s2cid=237487365 |doi-access=free }} and websites.

In his book Here Be Dragons: Exploring Fantasy Maps and Settings (2013), Stefan Ekman published the results of a survey he made of two-hundred fantasy books. This survey sought to answer common questions about the prevalence, features, and characteristics of fantasy cartography within the genre. Here are some of those findings.

{{Multiple image

| image1 = A Pictorial Map of World Wonder by Ernest Dudley Chase 1939.jpg

| caption1 = Ernest Dudley Chase's Pictorial Map of World Wonder

}}

Of the 200 surveyed books, 67 (34%) contained at least one map. Of these, 49 (73.1%) books had one map, 15 (22.4%) had two, and 3 (4.5%) had more than two maps.

In a survey of the 92 fantasy maps within the 67 fantasy books, the main subject matter or content of the maps were of: a primary world – 13 (14.1%); a secondary world – 72 (78.3%); an imaginary city – 5 (5.4%); one or more buildings – 2 (2.2%).

The same survey showed that maps were orientated differently. 74 of 92 (80.4%) were orientated north, 9 (9.8%) were orientated northeast to northwest, 9 (9.8%) did not specify a cardinal orientation. Of the 92 maps 63 (68.5%) included a compass rose as a feature.

With the increased popularity of professional and recreational cartographic fantasy, the demand for computer programs to streamline the process has increased too. Two leaders in the budding industry are Wonderdraft and Inkarnate.

Some software programs can create random terrain using fractal algorithms. Sophisticated programs can apply geologic effects such as tectonic plate movement and erosion; the resulting world can be rendered in great detail, providing a degree of realism to the result.{{Cite web |last=Crum |first=Maddle |date=24 August 2015 |title=Get Lost In These Maps Of Fictional Literary Worlds |url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/get-lost-in-these-maps-of-fictional-worlds_n_55d639b1e4b0ab468da06cfa |access-date=28 May 2022 |website=Huffpost}} OpenGeofiction allows anyone to practice fantasy cartography collaboratively.{{cite magazine|title=Get Lost In These Extremely Detailed Maps Of A Fictional Continent|first=Kelsey D.|last=Atherton|work=Popular Science|location=New York City|date=5 November 2013|accessdate=7 September 2024|url=https://www.popsci.com/article/technology/get-lost-these-extremely-detailed-maps-fictional-continent/}}

{{Multiple image

| image1 = Map of The Torne Archipelego.png

| caption1 = A map created in the program Wonderdraft

| image2 = Map of Jaznhujkel.jpg

| caption2 = A map created in the program Inkarnate

| align = center

}}

{{reflist}}

• {{cite book |last1=Ekman |first1=Stefan |title=Here be dragons : exploring fantasy maps and settings |date=2013 |publisher=Wesleyan University Press |location=Middletown, Conn. |isbn=978-0819573230}}
• {{cite book |last1=Laura |first1=Miller |title=Literary Wonderlands: A Journey Through the Greatest Fictional Worlds Ever Created |date=2016 |publisher=Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers |location=New York |isbn=978-0316316385}}
• {{cite book |last1=Post |first1=Jeremiah Benjamin |title=An Atlas of Fantasy |date=1979 |publisher=Souvenir Press |location=London |isbn=0-345-27399-0}}

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Cartography

Category:Fictional maps