Cartographic culture and nationalism in the early United States: Benjamin Vaughan and the choice for a prime meridian, 1811

Auteur :
EDNEY, M.H.

Description :
Vaughan (an Anglo-American merchant and politician) reacted to Lambert's nationalistic proposal (1809) for a prime meridian through Washington DC. He presented a more strictly rationalist and Enlightened viewpoint: there should be only one prime meridian (running through the Canaries) according to natural principles. Both viewpoints rested upon a common appreciation of a map's subliminal geometry. This conception has remained the basis for modern cartographic culture.


Type de document :
Article de périodique

Source :
Journal of historical geography, issn : 0305-7488, 1994, vol. 20, n°. 4, p. 384-395, Collation : Illustration

Date :
1994

Editeur :
Pays édition : Royaume-Uni, London ; New York, NY ; San Francisco, CA, Academic Press