Dr. Raleigh Ashlin Skelton known as 'Peter' to his friends, was born in Plymouth, England on December 21 1906. Best known for his work on the history of cartography and particularly his contribution proving the authenticity of the Vinland map . Smeatons tower on the Plymouth Hoe Plymouth is a city in the Westcountry of England, situated at the mouths of the rivers Plym and Tamar in the traditional county of Devon. ... 1906 (MCMVI) was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... Cartography or mapmaking (in Greek chartis = map and graphein = write) is the study and practice of making maps or globes. ... The Vinland map. ...

He was educated at Aldenham School and Pembroke College, Cambridge. He served as the Assistant Keeper of the Department of Printed Books of the British Museum from 1931 to 1953, with a break for military service from 1939 to 1945, and as Deputy Keeper from 1953 to 1967. Aldenham School is preparatory school, as well as a secondary school located in Hertfordshire, near the town of Aldenham. ... There are several Pembroke Colleges: Pembroke College, Cambridge Pembroke College, Oxford This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Map of the Cambridgeshire area (1904) The city of Cambridge is an old English university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire. ... The main entrance to the British Museum The British Museum in London is the United Kingdoms - and one of the worlds - largest and most important museums of human history and culture. ... 1931 (MCMXXXI) is a common year starting on Thursday. ... 1953 (MCMLIII) is a common year starting on Thursday. ... 1939 (MCMXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1945 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ...

He began work in the Map Room of the British Museum upon his return from military service in 1945 and in 1950 became the Superintendent, in which post he continued until his retirement in 1967. 1945 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1950 (MCML) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1967 (MCMLXVII) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

He died tragically on 7 December 1970 in a car crash. December 7 is the 341st day (342nd in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday. ...

Works

• The Vinland map and The Tartar Relation, written with Thomas E Marsden, and George D Painter, by Yale University Press,
• History of Cartography (with Leo Bagrow), originally published in London and Cambridge by C. A. Watts and Harvard University Press in 1964.
• Skelton wrote a number of articles and books on maps of explorers including Captain James Cook's maps of Newfoundland, including 'The Marine Surveys of Captain James Cook in North America 1758-1768.'

the Vinland map The Vinland map is purportedly a 15th century map of the world, redrawn from a 13th century original. ... Giovanni da Pian del Carpini, or John of Plano Carpini or Joannes de Plano (??-1252) was one of the first Europeans to enter the court of the Great Khan of Mongol Empire and the author of the earliest important Western work on northern and central Asia, Russian Europe, and other... Yale University Press is a book publisher founded in 1908. ... James Cook, portrait by Nathaniel Dance, c. ... Map of Newfoundland Newfoundland (French: Terre-Neuve; Irish: Talamh an Éisc; Latin: Terra Nova) is a large island off the northeast coast of North America, and the most populous part of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. ... 1758 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... 1768 was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ...

Professional activities

• Peter Skelton also participated in numerous professional activities. He served as the Honorary Secretary of the Hakluyt Society from 1946 to 1966.

• He was the General Editor of Imago Mundi, the major journal in the field of the history of cartography, from 1957 to 1970. This was a colaboration with R. V. Tooley

• He was Chair of the Working Group on Early Maps of the International Geographical Union from 1961.

• He was also a member of l'Academic Internationale d'Histoire des Sciences and of various other societies concerned with history, geography, archaeology, bibliography and archives.

• During a sabbatical leave in 1962-63, he served as consultant and Acting Map Curator at Harvard University in the Widener Library.

1962 (MCMLXII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... A curator of a cultural heritage institution (e. ... Harvard University is a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA and a member of the Ivy League. ...

Honours

A number of honors were bestowed upon Peter Skelton during his lifetime.

• 1951 he was elected FSA (Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London).
• 1957 He was awarded the Gill Memorial of the Royal Geographical Society.

External link

Bibliographic Essay: History of Cartography