I went to the Tolkien exhibition at the Bodlian Library in Oxford to see the amazing maps that he had drawn as both illustrations and planning for the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Photography was banned but on the way out I spotted this massive tapestry map hanging in the lobby area.

“The Sheldon Tapestry Map of Worcester was created around 1590, one of four such tapestry maps commissioned by Ralph Sheldon. The map is woven in wool and silk. As a concept, these tapestry maps were unique in England, nothing else of this cartographic nature had been created at the time. The map content is almost certainly derived from the county maps of Christopher Saxon (1574-79)” – abbreviated notes from the Bodleian Library

During the UK Mapping Festival Ken organised an excursion to Bellerby and Co’s globe making workshop in Stoke Newington for a small group of map geeks. Peter Bellerby gave us a tour of the workshop, explained some of the processes involved in making these magnificent globes whilst trying not to give away the secret sauce that makes a Bellerby globe so special. Cartographers will be fascinated by the decisions that have to be taken to fit content and labels onto a globe.

Every globe is made by hand, carefully balanced and hand coloured. They take weeks of painstaking work to complete which explains the cost, a massive globe like the Churchill above costs of over £70k! If anyone is wondering what to buy for the map lover who has almost everything …

 

Seen hanging on the wall at the Four Points Sheraton in Bangor, Maine was this delightful elephant bust featuring a historic map. I liked it so much I went and bought one myself, though mine obviously had a historic map of London. You can buy one too…from Cardboard Safari.

 

posted by Ken

As you exit the Serengeti Nature Reserve heading south you enter a wilderness containing the Ngorongoro Crater and game reserve. This map stands in the middle of nowhere helping you to orientate yourself. Ken Field recognised a couple of carto artefacts that indicated the map had been made with Esri software (give away default settings).

Our first “Map in the Wild” because, well just because. GeoMob is a London based meet up group for geo geeks run by Ed Freyfogle. At the end of the UK Mapping Festival, Ken Field presented the UK Cheese Map, an exquisite carved cheese board in the of the UK with over 20 regional cheeses positioned over their places of origin. Ken carted the cheese board from California and arranged for over 20 cheeses to be shipped to his brother’s home and then down to London in time for GeoMob. I’d call that out as an incredible example of dedication to Mappery! BTW 60-70 geeks scoffed all f the cheese.