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Biography of Abraham Ortelius
Name: Abraham Ortelius
Birth Date: April 14, 1527
Death Date: July 4, 1598
Place of Birth: Antwerp, Belgium
Nationality: Flemish
Gender: Male
Occupations: map maker
Abraham Ortelius
The Flemish map maker and map seller Abraham Ortelius (1527-1598) is known for his "Theatrum orbis terrarum," one of the first major atlases. He accelerated the movement away from Ptolemaic geographical conceptions.Abraham Ortelius was born Abraham Ortels of German parents in Antwerp on April 14, 1527. He was trained as an engraver, worked as an illuminator of maps, and by 1554 was in the business of selling maps and antiquities. This business involved extensive traveling, which enabled Ortelius to make contacts with the international community of scholars concerned with exploration and cartography and especially with English experts like Richard Hakluyt and John Dee. From these sources Ortelius obtained cartographical materials and information; he also collected and published maps by his fellow Flemish geographer Gerhardus Mercator.Ortelius began issuing various maps in the 1560s. Among these were maps of Egypt, Asia, and the world. The Theatrum orbis terrarum (1570) consisted of 70 maps on 53 sheets. There …showed first 150 words…
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…showed last 150 words…more scientific basis.Nevertheless, by the late 16th century the acceleration of the flow of new geographical information produced by the Discoveries had rendered many of Ptolemy's observations obsolete. It was time once more for the printed map to catch up with the manuscript chart, a task facilitated by the work of Ortelius and Mercator. It is significant, however, that both Europe and Southeast Asia received the most accurate rendition from Ortelius, whereas the outlines of South America remained very inadequately portrayed--perhaps a reflection of the real weight of the Discoveries with respect to their lines of economic and geographical attraction. Ortelius died at Antwerp on July 4, 1598. Further Reading Ortelius's career and contributions are examined in Lloyd Arnold Brown, The Story of Maps (1949); Boies Penrose, Travel and Discovery in the Renaissance: 1420-1620 (1952); and G. R. Crone, Maps and Their Makers: An Introduction to the History of Cartography (1953; 4th rev. ed. 1968).
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