Ken Jennings takes readers on a world tour of geogeeks from the London Map Fair to the bowels of the Library of Congress, from the prepubescent geniuses at the National Geographic Bee to the computer programmers at Google Earth. Each chapter delves into a different aspect of map culture: highpointing, geocaching, road atlas rallying, even the "unreal estate" charted on the maps of fiction and fantasy. Jennings also considers the ways in which cartography has shaped our history, suggesting that the impulse to make and read maps is as relevant today as it has ever been.
From the "Here be dragons" parchment maps of the Age of Discovery to the spinning globes of grade school to the postmodern revolution of digital maps and GPS, "Maphead "is filled with intriguing details, engaging anecdotes, and enlightening analysis. If you're an inveterate map lover yourself--or even if you're among the cartographically clueless who can get lost in a supermarket--let Ken Jennings be your guide to the strange world of mapheads.

Good quality large wall map; ideal for a classroom, bedroom or office wall Explore the world with this high quality, large, laminated, rolled map of the World. The Marco Polo World Wall Map is a perfect reference map covering the whole world. It shows the political units on each continent, mountain relief and sea depth. In addition to the beautiful, colourful illustration, it includes: national flags of each country country names, capital cities and country codes Supplied in a durable plastic tube, this fascinating, easy-to-read world wall map looks great on any wall. Ideal as a poster for a bedroom wall, school classroom or planning your dream trip. Dimensions: 120 x 80 cm Scale: 1: 35 000 000 | 1cm = 350km | 1inch = 550 miles

The most detailed map of the World available which can be folded and stored in a standard-size notebook. The 6 laminated pages are spill and rip-proof and include an 11" x 17" map and 4 pages of country facts. An essential tool for school at any level. Suggested uses: Students -- a map you can keep handy from elementary school through college; Professors -- adopt this map for your course as an inexpensive supplement; Teachers -- a map that can be purchased as a class set that will last your entire career; Parents -- instill knowledge and interest in the world, inspire travel, and connect family history to the places on the map.

The Forth Rail Bridge is one of the world's great engineering feats, and one of its most well-known. When it opened in 1890, the cantilevered bridge had one of the world's longest spans, at 541 metres. Its distinctive and innovative design marks it as an important milestone in bridge construction during the period when railways came to dominate long-distance land travel. Spanning the estuary of one of the country's great rivers, the Forth Bridge revolutionised travel within Scotland, and it continues to carry and freight more than 130 years after its official opening. This view of the Forth Rail Bridge features the Gresley A4 Class Pacific Plover locomotive and was painted by Terence Cuneo (1907-1996) for British Railways in 1952. Cuneo withstood gales of over 50 mph as he sketched the scene from a girder above the track.

Our brand new and up to date whisky map shows over 150 distilleries on our exceptionally clear road mapping, allowing you to navigate to your chosen destination. Enlarged inset map of Speyside & clearly defined production regions allows you to plan your distilleries tour according to your taste buds! Distilleries are indexed with addresses and full contact details and clearly defined as those with and without visitor facilities. The best thing to go with your dram apart from a splash of water. Foreword by Blair Bowman, whisky consultant Over 150 whisky distilleries shown with & without visitor facilities Clearly defined whisky producing regions Exceptionally clear road mapping with mileage markers Index to distilleries with full address & contact details Fun facts & information on the reverse Index to place names

This unique and delightful map of mainland Scotland and the Hebrides, from the collection of the National Library of Scotland, is a magnificent pictorial map of Scotland. Not just annotated with beautiful calligraphy, it also includes dozens of vignettes of famous Scottish places, from cities and towns to lochs to mountains and castles, as well as people and animals. It was originally published in 1931 by Pratts Oil, which was known as Standard Oil in the US and a few months later as Esso in the UK.

This beautiful book is a lavishly illustrated look at the most important atlases in history and the cartographers who made them. Atlases are books that changed the course of history. Pored over by rulers, explorers and adventures these books were used to build empires, wage wars, encourage diplomacy and nurture trade. Written by Philip Parker, an authority on the history of maps, this book brings these fascinating artefacts to life, offering a unique, lavishly illustrated guide to the history of these incredible books and the cartographers behind them. All key cartographic works from the last half-millennium are covered, including: The Theatrum Orbis Terrarum, considered the world's first atlas and produced in 1570 by the Dutch, geographer Abraham Ortelius. The 17th-century Klencke - one of the world's largest books that requires 6 people to carry it The Rand McNally Atlas of 1881, still in print today and a book that turned its makers, William H Rand and Andrew McNally into cartographic royalty. This beautiful book will engross readers with its detailed, visually stunning illustrations and fascinating story of how map-making has developed throughout human history.

At the turn of the 20th century the rail network extended to over 23,000 miles, very nearly the circumference of the world - the greatest length it was ever to achieve. Some urban routes had closed and later, hundreds of rural lines and stations succumbed to the Beeching axe. This title shows the network in its heyday before the decline commenced.

Medieval Christian European and Arabic-Islamic cultures are both notable for the wealth and diversity of their geographical literature, yet to date there has been relatively little attempt to compare medieval Christian and Islamic mapping traditions in a detailed manner. Cartography between Christian Europe and the Arabic-Islamic World offers a timely assessment of the level of interaction between the two traditions across a range of map genres, including world and regional maps, maps of the seven climes, and celestial cartography. Through a mixture of synthesis and case study, the volume makes the case for significant but limited cultural transfer. Contributors are: Elly Dekker; Jean-Charles Ducene; Alfred Hiatt; Yossef Rapoport; Stefan Schroeder; Emmanuelle Vagnon.

WITH A FOREWORD BY TIM HARFORD Which nations have North Korean embassies? Which region has the highest number of death metal bands per capita? How many countries have bigger economies than California? Who drives on the 'wrong' side of the road? And where can you find lions in the wild? Revelatory, thought-provoking and fun, Brilliant Maps is a unique atlas of culture, history, politics and miscellanea, compiled by the editor of the iconic Brilliant Maps website. As visually arresting as Information is Beautiful and as full of surprising facts and figures as any encyclopaedia, Brilliant Maps is a stunning piece of cartography that maps our curious and varied planet. For graphic design enthusiasts, compulsive Wikipedia readers and those looking for the sort of gift they buy for someone else and wind up keeping for themselves, this book will change the way you see the world and your place in it.

Since antiquity, artists have visualized the known world through the female (sometimes male) body. In the age of exploration, America was added to figures of Europe, Asia, and Africa who would come to inhabit the borders of geographical visual imagery. In the abundance of personifications in print, painting, ceramics, tapestry, and sculpture, do portrayals vary between hierarchy and global human dignity? Are we witnessing the emergence of ethnography or of racism? Yet, as this volume shows, depictions of bodies as places betray the complexity of human claims and desires. Bodies and Maps: Early Modern Personifications of the Continents opens up questions about early modern politics, travel literature, sexualities, gender, processes of making, and the mobility of forms and motifs. Contributors are: Louise Arizzoli, Elisa Daniele, Hilary Haakenson, Elizabeth Horodowich, Maryanne Cline Horowitz, Ann Rosalind Jones, Paul H. D. Kaplan, Marion Romberg, Mark Rosen, Benjamin Schmidt, Chet Van Duzer, Bronwen Wilson, and Michael Wintle.

How many place names are there in the Hawaiian Islands? Even a rough estimate is impossible. Hawaiians named taro patches, rocks, trees, canoe landings, resting places in the forests, and the tiniest spots where miraculous events are believed to have taken place. And place names are far from static--names are constantly being given to new houses and buildings, streets and towns, and old names are replaced by new ones. It is essential, then, to record the names and the lore associated with them now, while Hawaiians are here to lend us their knowledge. And, whatever the fate of the Hawaiian language, the place names will endure. The first edition of Place Names of Hawaii contained only 1,125 entries. The coverage is expanded in the present edition to include about 4,000 entries, including names in English. Also, approximately 800 more names are included in this volume than appear in the second edition of the Atlas of Hawaii.

The Atlas of Geographical Curiosities - a glorious celebration of an unusual world. Welcome to this compendium of interesting, unexpected and downright bizarre geographical anomalies that are guaranteed to delight and inspire. The world is full of little-known facts that have sometimes been a source of diplomatic or military struggle. Many still exist under the radar now to be revealed by this entertaining treasure trove. Where else can you discover: Countries that do not really exist A UK hotel room which became Yugoslavian for one day only An island which is Spanish for six months of the year and French for the other six A city which is officially constituted by one single high-rise (14 floor) building The world's first and only railway that belonged to one country and ran across another A hotel room whose bedroom is in France and whose bathroom is in Switzerland Bir Tawil which is one of the very few territories on earth not claimed by any country The only place in the world where you can find so-called counter-enclaves where in a 20-minute walk around the town you can cross an international border at least 50 times at 50 different points The world is full of wonderful and strange geographical irregularities. Turn to the Atlas of Geographical Curiosities to uncover more little known but important facts.