Road to Rome map

Road to Rome map

Romweg map; Das ist der Rom Weg von meylen zu meylen mit puncten verzeychnet von eyner stat zu der andern durch deutzsche lantt

This is a facsimile of a rare colored version of a black and white woodcut map that highlights routes to travel from central European countries to Rome.  It was likely produced in 1500 AD, a jubilee year for the Catholic Church, meaning many pilgrims would head to Rome for the universal pardon of their sins. 

The map is oriented with the south up. Routes are represented with dashed lines that weave through cities on the way to Rome. Each dash within these routes is equivalent to one German mile (4.6 US miles).

While the focus of the map is on Germany and Rome, neighboring countries are also represented and colored. The colored regions form country boundaries that segment the map. Most of the marked cities are centered around Germany and Rome, but neighboring countries also have cities and routes to Rome marked. Large cities of importance are highlighted with small, schematized cityscapes which contrast with the small circles representing the smaller cities. Due to the Catholic context of this map, important pilgrimage sites are also represented through schematized sketches of the church. These pilgrimage sites are also clustered around Germany and Rome.

Etzlaub was originally known for his ability at compass making which he incorporates into this map at the bottom margins. A schematic drawing of a compass sits at the bottom where the reader can rest their compass. The surrounding text gives instructions on how to use the compass and map in tandem to orient the reader with respect to the map.

This scientific approach to the map is also exemplified within the distances displayed on the map. The left margin has markings to designate latitude along the map region. These latitude markings are equally spaced which follows the widely accepted projection that Ptolemy used in his calculations in the 2nd century CE. According to one scholar, Etzlaub acknowledges the inaccuracy in this approach, as distances in maps should distort as they approach the equator. This is reflected in this map as the distance markings on the routes displayed in the map become farther apart as they approach Rome. Therefore, while Etlaub may have continued the latitude markings of Ptolemy, he clearly understood the necessity for a new projection that correctly mapped distance distortions.

Future maps by Etzlaub would include latitude distortions which would later become commonplace within the Mercator projection which many modern-day maps employ. In fact, it is known that Mercator and Etzlaub were in discussion about these projections suggesting Etzlaub may have been one of the earliest adopters of the modern projection styles. (Max Kuhs '21)

Erhard Etzlaub

London, British Library, Cartographic Items Maps C.2.a.7.(2.)

Sheet Map

Monumenta cartographica 1490-1525: kartographische Denkmäler, ein Triumph über die Zeit: Essener Bearbeitung von sechs Tafeln aus der Frühzeit der Kartographie mit sechs Vollfaksimilierungen, ed. Werner Kreuer. Essen: Institut für Geographie der Universität GH Essen, 1996.

1500

woodcut

Special Collections, Carleton College, Northfield, MN

http://explore.bl.uk/BLVU1:LSCOP-ALL:BLL01004849134

German

Regional Map

Central Europe, Germany, Italy

Englisch, Brigitte. "Erhard Etzlaub's Projection and Methods of Mapping." Imago Mundi 48 (1996): 103-23. http://www.jstor.org/stable/1151265.

Krüger, Herbert. "Erhard Etzlaub's "Romweg" Map and Its Dating in the Holy Year of 1500." Imago Mundi 8 (1951): 17-26. http://www.jstor.org/stable/1150044. (contains translation of text on page 6)

Meurer, Peter H.  Cartography in the German Lands 1450-1650.  In History of Cartography, vol. 3, edited by David Woodward, 1172-1245.  Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2007.

Rights for maps held by individual publishers and institutions. Thumbnails displayed constitute fair use.