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Majorcan cartographic school is the term coined by historians to refer to the collection of predominantlyJewishcartographers,cosmographers andnavigational instrument-makers and someChristian associates that flourished inMallorca (Majorca) in the 13th, 14th and 15th centuries untilthe expulsion of the Jews. The label is usually inclusive of those who worked inCatalonia. The Majorcan school is frequently contrasted with the contemporary Italian cartography school.
The island ofMallorca, the largest of theBalearic islands in the westernMediterranean, had a long history of seafaring. Muslim and Jewish merchants participated in extensive trade across the Mediterranean Sea withItaly,Egypt andTunisia. In the 14th century their commerce entered into the Atlantic, reaching as far asEngland and theLow Countries. Ruled as an independent Muslim kingdom through much of the Early Middle Ages, Mallorca came under Christian rule in 1231.
It retained its independence as theKingdom of Majorca until 1344, when it was permanently annexed to theCrown of Aragon. This coincided with a period of Aragonese expansionism across the Mediterranean toSardinia and Corsica,Sicily and Greece (Athens andNeopatria), in which Majorcan nautical, cartographic and mercantile expertise was often called upon. Majorcan merchants and seafarers spearheaded the attempt by the Aragonese crown to seize the newly discoveredCanary Islands in the Atlantic from the 1340s to the 1360s.
Majorcan cosmographers and cartographers experimented and developed their own cartographic techniques. According to some scholars (e.g. Nordenskiold), the Majorcans were responsible for the invention (c. 1300) of the "normalportolan chart". The portolan was a realistic, detailed nautical chart, gridded by arhumbline network withcompass lines that could be used to deduce exact sailing directions between any two points.
Portolan charts, which appeared rather suddenly after 1300, constitute a sharp departure from all earlier maps. Unlike the circularmappa mundi of Christian academic tradition, the portolan was oriented towards the north, and focused on a realistic depiction of geographic distances with a degree of accuracy that is astounding, even by modern standards. Historians speculate that the portolan was constructed from the first-hand information of mariners and merchants, possibly assisted byastronomers, and were geared for navigational use, in particular the plotting by compass of navigational routes.
Both Majorca andGenoa have laid claim for the invention of the portolan chart, and it is unlikely this will ever be resolved. Few charts have survived to the modern day. TheCarta Pisana portolan chart, made at the end of the 13th century (1275–1300), is the oldest survivingnautical chart.[1] The earliest extant ones, from the first half of the 14th century, seem to have been constructed by Genoese cartographers, with Majorcan charts making their appearance only in the latter half of the century. As a result, many historians have argued that the Majorcan cartography derived from the Genoese, citing the mysterious figure ofAngelino Dulcert, possibly a Genoese immigrant working in Majorca in the 1330s, as the key intermediary in the transmission.[2]
On the other hand, some scholars have embraced the hypothesis first forwarded byA.E. Nordenskiöld, that the surviving charts are misleading, that the earliest Genoese maps were just faithful copies of a conjectured prototype, now lost, composed around 1300 by an unknownMajorcan cosmographer, possibly with the involvement ofRamon Llull.[3] An intermediary position acknowledges Genoese priority, but insists the Majorcan school had an autonomous origin, at best "inspired", but not derived, from the Genoese.[4] Recent research tends to lean towards the first interpretation, but at the same time curbing some of the more extreme Italian claims and recognizing distinctively Majorcan development.[5]
Regardless of the exact origin, historians agree that the Majorcans developed their own distinctive style or "school" of portolan cartography, which can be distinguished from the "Italian school". Both Italian and Majorcan portolan charts focus on the same geographic area, what is sometimes called the "Normal Portolan": theMediterranean Sea, theBlack Sea and theAtlantic Ocean coast up to the environs ofFlanders - the area frequently travelled by contemporary Mediterranean merchants and sailors.
As time and knowledge progressed, some cartographers stretched the geographic boundaries of the normal portolan to include a larger swathe of Atlantic ocean, including manyAtlantic islands, real and mythical, a longer stretch of thewest African coast to the south, theBaltic Sea in the north and theCaspian Sea in the east. The central focus on the Mediterranean remained throughout and the scale rarely changed.
The distinction between the Majorcan and Italian school is one of style rather than range. Italian portolan charts were sparse and restrained, strictly focused on coastal detail, with the inland areas left largely or wholly empty, and the charts largely bereft of illustrations.
The Majorcan style, its beginnings already decipherable in the 1339 chart ofAngelino Dulcert, and finding its epitome in theCatalan Atlas of 1375, attributed to Majorcan cartographerAbraham Cresques, contained a lot more inland detail and was replete with rich colorful illustrations, depicting cities, mountain ranges, rivers and some miniature people. Among the quintessential features replicated in almost all Majorcan charts:
Among the miniature people routinely found in many Majorcan maps are depictions of the traders on theSilk Road and thetrans-Saharan route, theEmperor ofMali seated on a gold mine and the ship ofJaume Ferrer.
Although the Italian school largely adhered to its sparse style, some later Italian cartographers, such as thePizzigani brothers andBattista Beccario toyed with Majorcan themes, and introduced some of their features into their own maps.
Although some historians like to distinguish the Italian maps as "nautical" and the Majorcan maps as "nautico-geographic", it is important to note that the Majorcan portolans did not sacrifice the essential nautical function of their portolans. Lift the entertaining illustrations, and the Majorcan maps are as nautically detailed and serviceable as the Italian.
Major members of the Majorcan school of cartography include:
Unlike in Italy, where the crafts of instrument-making and cartography were distinct, most of the Majorcan cartographers also worked as makers ofnautical instruments - often appearing in civic records, as both master map-maker andbruixoler ("compass-maker"). Some were also amateur or professionalcosmographers, with expertise inastrology andastronomy, frequently inserting astronomicalcalendars in their atlases.
Most members of the Majorcan school, with the exception of Soler, wereJews, whether practicing orconversos. As a result, the school suffered heavily and eventually expired with the extension of force-conversion, expulsions and theSpanish Inquisition into the realms of the Crown of Aragon in the late 15th century.
The production of medievalPortolan charts can be divided in two major schools: theItalian and the Catalan. Italian medieval cartographers came mostly fromGenoa andVenice.Catalan charts were made in Majorca andBarcelona. Beside these two major schools, some maps were made inPortugal, but no examples survive.[7]
The inhabitants of Majorca were great navigators and cartographers. Their geographical knowledge was earned from their own experience and developed in a multicultural atmosphere. Muslim and Jewish merchants participated in extensive trade with Egypt and Tunisia, and in the 14th century they started doing business withEngland and theNetherlands. These groups were not limited by the rules imposed by the Christian framework, and their maps were way ahead of their time. Professor Gerald Crone, who wrote books on medieval mapping, said of these cartographers, they "...threw off the bounds of tradition and anticipated the achievements of the Renaissance". The maps they made were prized by the princes and rulers of the Spanish mainland and other countries. The maps made in Majorca were easy to recognize by their brightly colored illustrations of significant geographical features and portraits of foreign rulers.[8]
The first known Majorcan map was made byAngelino Dulcert in 1339.[7] Even in this early work, all the distinguishing features of the Majorcan Cartographic School were present. Dulcert made precise, colorful drawings that showed all the topographical details including rivers, lakes, mountains, etc. The notes written inLatin described the map.[9]
The most famous cartographers from the Majorcan school were Jews.[10]
Abraham Cresques also known as, Cresques the Jew, was appointed as a Master of Maps andCompasses byJohn I of Aragon. The money he got for his appointment was used to build baths for Jews inPalma.In 1374 and 1375 Abraham and his sonJehuda worked on a special order.John I of Aragon advised the authorities that he needed to get a map, which would show theStrait of Gibraltar, the Atlantic coast and the ocean itself. The map they made was named theCatalan Atlas, and it is the most importantCatalan map of the medieval period.[10][11]
The first two leaves, forming the oriental portion of the Catalan Atlas, illustrate numerous religious references as well as a synthesis of medieval mappae mundi (Jerusalem located close to the center) and the travel literature of the time, notablyMarco Polo'sBook of Marvels and the Travels, andVoyage ofSir John Mandeville. Many Indian and Chinese cities can be identified. The explanatory texts report customs described byMarco Polo.[9] Cresques, who knewArabic, also used the travel narratives of Moroccan explorerIbn Battuta.Mecca has a blue dome and shows Muslim prayer. The text next to the image is:
In this town is the shrine of Mohammed the Prophet of the Saracens, who come here on pilgrimages from every country. And they say that, having seen something so precious, they are no longer worthy of seeing anything more at all, and they blind themselves in honor of Mohammed."[8][12]
While the areas under Muslim control were marked with domes, Jerusalem was surrounded by tales from Old and New Testaments like theGarden of Eden, thecrucifixion,Noah's Ark and others.
The image of the caravan is accompanied by Marco Polo's travel account:
You must know that those who wish to cross this desert remain and lodge for one whole week in a town named Lop, where they and their beasts can rest. Then they lay in all the provisions they need for seven months.[13]
A Catalan Atlas was requested byCharles V of France, even though he expelled all the Jews from France in 1394.
The Catalan Atlas is located now inBibliothèque nationale de France. A few other Cresques maps were mentioned in inventories from Spain and France in late 1387.[10][11]
Jehuda Cresques continued his father's traditions. He was forced to convert to Christianity in 1391. His new name was Jacobus Ribes. He was called "lo Jueu buscoler" (the map Jew), or "el jueu de les bruixoles" (the compass Jew). Jehuda was ordered to move to Barcelona, where he continued his work, as a court cartographer. Later, he was invited to Portugal byHenry the Navigator. His maps were still made in Catalan (Majorca) traditions, and that's why he was called "Mestre Jacome de Malhorca".[10] He was the first director of famous Nautical observatory atSagresat the age of discovery.[10]
Another famous Jewish cartographer was Haym ibn Risch. He was forced to convert to Christianity and took the name Juan de Vallsecha. He was probably the father ofGabriel de Vallseca, author of yet another famous mapamundi, one later used byAmerigo Vespucci. Gabriel also produced a very accurate maps ofBlack Sea andMediterranean Sea.[14][15] Another Jewish cartographer was Mecia de Vildestes. An outstanding map by Vildestes dated 1413 is proudly featured at the Bibliothèque Nationale of Paris.
Anti-Jewish persecutions brought the end to the famous school of cartography at Majorca.[10]
(Timeline derived fromca:Llista cronològica de cartògrafs portolans mallorquins)
carta pisana.
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