The Vinland map.

The Vinland map is purportedly a 15th century Mappa Mundi, redrawn from a 13th century original. In addition to showing Africa, Asia and Europe, the map depicts a large island west of Greenland in the Atlantic called Vinland; the map describes this region as having been visited in the 11th century. If authentic, such evidence is an important addition to archeological findings such as the L'Anse aux Meadows site, documenting pre-Columbian Norse travels to the Americas. To date it is unknown if the map is fake or authentic. Image File history File links Unbalanced_scales. ... Download high resolution version (1024x709, 176 KB)Vinland map The two-dimensional work of art depicted in this image is in the public domain in the United States and in those countries with a copyright term of life of the author plus 100 years. ... Download high resolution version (1024x709, 176 KB)Vinland map The two-dimensional work of art depicted in this image is in the public domain in the United States and in those countries with a copyright term of life of the author plus 100 years. ... (14th century - 15th century - 16th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 15th century was that century which lasted from 1401 to 1500. ... The Hereford Mappa Mundi, about 1300, Hereford Cathedral, England. ... (12th century - 13th century - 14th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 13th century was that century which lasted from 1201 to 1300. ... A world map showing the continent of Africa Africa is the worlds second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. ... World map showing the location of Asia. ... World map showing the location of Europe. ... The Atlantic Ocean forms a component of the all-encompassing World Ocean and is directly linked to the Arctic Ocean, the Pacific Ocean, the Indian Ocean, and the Southern Ocean. ... Vinland was the name given to a part of North America by the Icelandic norseman Leif Eiríksson, about the year (AD) 1000. ... As a means of recording the passage of time, the 11th century was that century which lasted from 1001 to 1100. ... Viking colonisation site at LAnse-aux-Meadows Viking colonisation site at LAnse-aux-Meadows LAnse aux Meadows (from the French LAnse-aux-Méduses (Jellyfish Cove)) is a site on the northernmost tip of the island of Newfoundland, in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, where the remains... World map showing the Americas CIA political map of the Americas The Americas are the lands of the Western hemisphere or New World consisting of the continents of North America[1], Central America and South America with their associated islands and regions. ...

The map was discovered bound together with a codex, Historia Tartorum ("Description of the Tartars," sometimes referred to as the Tartar Relation). The Historia is a manuscript of undoubted authenticity that was at some point bound with the Vinland Map. It is a description of the history and manners of the Mongols that appears to be an early version of the memoir of Giovanni da Pian del Carpine (q.v. for full details), an Italian Franciscan friar who in 1245 made a trip to the supreme khan at Karakoram. Carpine went on to write a more robust account of his travels, but the shorter "Tartar Relation" survived until the 15th century by being included as an addendum to a volume of Vincent of Beauvais's encyclopedic "Historical Mirror" (Speculum historiale). First page of the Codex Argenteus A codex (Latin for block of wood, book; plural codices) is a handwritten book, in general, one produced from Late Antiquity through the Middle Ages. ... Tatars or Tartars is a collective name applied to the Turkic-speaking people of Europe and Asia. ... 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... The name Mongols (Mongolian: Mongol) specifies one or several ethnic groups. ... John of Plano Carpinis famous journey—his route is shown in Dark blue (railroad track style). ... The Order of Friars Minor and other Franciscan movements are disciples of Saint Francis of Assisi. ... Events Rebellion against king Sancho II of Portugal in favor of his brother Alphonso. ... Khan (sometimes spelled as Xan, Han, Ke-Han) is a title. ... Karakoram is a mountain range spanning the borders between Pakistan, China, and India, located in the regions of Gilgit, Ladakh and Baltistan. ... (14th century - 15th century - 16th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 15th century was that century which lasted from 1401 to 1500. ... The Dominican friar Vincent of Beauvais (ca 1190 - 1264?) wrote the main encyclopedia that was used in the middle ages. ...

The map first came to light in 1957 (three years before the discovery of the Norse site at L'Anse aux Meadows in 1960) and was donated with funds from Paul Mellon to its current owner, Yale University, in 1965; The New York Times reported that insurers valued the map at $25 million. It was first published by Dr. Raleigh Ashlin Skelton et al. The Vinland Map and Tartar Relation, 1965. In 1995 Yale released a second edition of the book, together with further articles that claim the map is authentic. Year 1957 (MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link displays the 1957 Gregorian calendar). ... Paul Mellon KBE (11 June 1907 – 1 February 1999) was an American philanthropist and Thoroughbred racehorse owner/breeder who is one of the only four people ever designated Exemplars of Racing by the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. ... “Yale” redirects here. ... Year 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the 1965 Gregorian calendar. ... The New York Times is an internationally known daily newspaper published in New York City and distributed in the United States and many other nations worldwide. ... Dr. Raleigh Ashlin Skelton known as Peter to his friends, was born in Plymouth, England on December 21 1906. ... Year 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full 1995 Gregorian calendar). ...

Authenticity

Dating of parchment

There have been claims that the map is a forgery and examinations by a number of institutions, including the Smithsonian Institution, have returned conflicting results. Radiocarbon dating, performed by physicist Douglass Donahue and chemists Jacqueline Olin and Garman Harbottle, place the origin of the parchment somewhere between 1423 and 1445, although the entire map appears to have been coated with an unknown substance sometime in the 1950s. This could have been part of a previously undocumented attempt at preservation, or could have been done by a forger as part of the process of drawing a new map on a previously-used piece of 15th century parchment. It is unclear whether the ink on the map is on top of this more recent layer of material or not.^[1] Forgery is the process of making or adapting objects or documents (see false document), with the intention to deceive. ... The Smithsonian Institution Building or Castle on the National Mall serves as the Institutions headquarters. ... Radiocarbon dating is a radiometric dating method that uses the naturally occurring isotope carbon-14 (14C) to determine the age of carbonaceous materials up to about 60,000 years[1]. Raw, i. ... German parchmenter, 1568 Parchment is a material for the pages of a book or codex, made from fine calf skin, sheep skin or goat skin. ... Events July 31 - Hundred Years War: Battle of Cravant - The French army is defeated at Cravant on the banks of the river Yonne. ... Events Discovery of Senegal and Cape Verde by Dinas Diaz Births March 1 - Sandro Botticelli, Italian painter (died 1510) March 16 - Johann Geiler von Kaisersberg, Swiss-born preacher (died 1510) Albert Brudzewski, Polish astronomer (died 1497) Nicolas Chuquet, French mathematician Deaths June 5 - Leonel Power, English composer June 11 - Henry... This does not cite any references or sources. ...

Dating of ink (a Controversy)

Chemical analysis of the ink dated the map to after 1923 due to the presence of anatase (titanium dioxide) –a naturally rare compound that has been used as a synthetic yellow pigment since the 1920s. Anatase was not manufactured before the 1920s, which suggests that the "yellowing" of ink on the map was faked. Although in 1992 Dr. Thomas Cahill of University of California, Davis found natural anatase in a variety of medieval manuscripts, the rounded crystals in the ink from the map were characteristic of synthetically created anatase. In July 2002, the authenticity of the map was again challenged. Using Raman spectroscopy, the drawings on the map are claimed to consist of simulated stains from the decay of an iron-based ink, although the ink itself is carbon-based and should have generated no yellowish decay stains. ^[2] All of the other pages of the Historia Tartorum and Speculum historiale were written using standard medieval iron-based ink. Nevertheless, chemist Jacqueline Olin, a retired researcher with the Smithsonian Institution, has concluded that the map's ink was made in medieval times.^[3] Year 1923 (MCMXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Three crystals from Gouveia, Minas Gerais, Brazil Anatase is one of the three mineral forms of titanium dioxide (the other two being brookite and rutile). ... The 1920s is a decade that is sometimes referred to as the Jazz Age or the Roaring Twenties, usually applied to America. ... Year 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar). ... Thomas Cahill is an author who has written 4 best sellers, most famous of which is Sailing the Wine Dark Sea: Why The Greeks Matter. ... The University of California, Davis, commonly known as UC Davis, is one of the ten campuses of the University of California, and was established as the University Farm in 1905. ... Also see: 2002 (number). ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ...

Content of map

Finally, there are a number of questions about the actual content of the map. The most obvious anomaly is that the map depicts Greenland as an island of the correct size and shape while Norway where they came from doesn't resemble at all, although most contemporary Viking accounts–including a rare map from 1427–depict Greenland as a peninsula descending from the north. This is unusual because Greenland was not believed to have been successfully circumnavigated until the turn of the 20th century. In addition, the text uses a Latin form of Leif Eriksson's name ("Erissonius") more consistent with 17th century norms and with transmission through a French or Italian source. Thirdly, the Latin captions include several usages of the diphthong æ; this was almost unknown in later medieval times (a simple e was written instead) and although the diphthong was revived by Italian humanist scholars in the early 1400s, it is found only in documents of deliberately classicising style produced by Italian scribes, and never in conjunction with a Gothic style of script such as we see in the Map. Finally, Vikings were known for their navigation skills and did not use maps in nautical travel.^{[citation needed]} For this reason, some experts question why this map would have been created. Events Lincoln College, a constituent college of the University of Oxford, is founded. ... (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999... Latin is an ancient Indo-European language originally spoken in Latium, the region immediately surrounding Rome. ... A statue of Leif Eriksson near the Minnesota State Capitol in St. ... (16th century - 17th century - 18th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 17th century was that century which lasted from 1601-1700. ...

Other evidence for Vinland

Regardless of whether or not the map is genuine, it has been independently proven to general satisfaction that Greenland was settled by Vikings around 970, a settlement which lasted until the fifteenth century. In regards to the Americas, the archaeological finds in L'Anse aux Meadows in present day Newfoundland, Canada, show that there was a Viking settlement which predates Christopher Columbus and his accidental "finding of the New World" in 1492. The "Skalholt" map (marked 1570) depicts what can only be northern Newfoundland and calls it "Promontorium Winlandia", at the exact position of the L'Anse aux Meadows Norse site and parallel to England! Also note how the "finger" of Newfoundland (on a modern map) "points" in the direction of southern Greenland and is so depicted on the Skalholt map. The term king commonly denotes the ship-borne warriors, pirates and traders of Norsemen (literally, men from the north) who originated in Scandinavia and raided the coasts of britain and ireland as far east as the Volga River in Russia from the late 8–18th century. ... Events Major volcano eruption in Mashu Japan Devastating decade long famine begins in France Byzantine Emperor John I successfully defends the Eastern Roman Empire from massive barbarian invasion Construction completed on Al-Azhar mosque in Cairo, worlds oldest Islamic university Births Leif Ericson, Norse explorer Seyyed Razi, important Muslim... (14th century - 15th century - 16th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 15th century was that century which lasted from 1401 to 1500. ... Archaeology, archeology, or archæology (from Greek: αρχαίος, archaios, combining form in Latin archae-, ancient; and λόγος, logos, knowledge) is the study of human cultures through the recovery, documentation and analysis of material remains and environmental data, including architecture, artifacts, biofacts, human remains, and landscapes. ... Viking colonisation site at LAnse-aux-Meadows Viking colonisation site at LAnse-aux-Meadows LAnse aux Meadows (from the French LAnse-aux-Méduses (Jellyfish Cove)) is a site on the northernmost tip of the island of Newfoundland, in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, where the remains... For other uses, see Newfoundland (disambiguation). ... Christopher Columbus (1451 – May 20, 1506) was a navigator and maritime explorer credited as the discoverer of the Americas. ...

See also

• Vinland
• Viking
• Kensington Runestone
• Ancient world maps
• World map
• Timeline of pre-Columbian trans-oceanic contact
• Pre-Columbian trans-oceanic contact

Vinland was the name given to a part of North America by the Icelandic norseman Leif Eiríksson, about the year (AD) 1000. ... The term king commonly denotes the ship-borne warriors, pirates and traders of Norsemen (literally, men from the north) who originated in Scandinavia and raided the coasts of britain and ireland as far east as the Volga River in Russia from the late 8–18th century. ... The Kensington runestone is a roughly rectangular slab of greywacke covered in runes on its face and side. ... Ancient world maps cover depictions of the world from Classical times to the Age of Discovery and the emergence of modern Geography. ... Physical world map (2004) with country borders and capitals—click for large, 1. ... This is a Timeline of contacts between the Americas and the rest of the world, both legendary and historically based. ... Pre-Columbian trans-oceanic contact refers to interactions between the indigenous peoples of the Americas and peoples of other continents—Europe, Africa, Asia, or Oceania—before the arrival of Christopher Columbus in 1492. ...

External links

• Vinlanda: The Vinland Map on the Web Comprehensive and balanced guide to the Vinland map on the web, including recent developments in the controversies.
• An article by the BBC on the date of the Vinland map
• Archaeological Forgeries
• Carpini's voyage to the great khan.
• 2003-11-28, Science Daily: Vindication For Vinland Map: New Study Supports Authenticity Quote: "...Recent conclusions that the storied Vinland Map is merely a clever forgery are based on a flawed understanding of the evidence...Norse explorers charted North America long before Columbus...these elements raise serious doubts about the possibility of forgery..."
• Brookhaven National Laboratory: Scientists Determine Age of New World Map. “Vinland Map”, “Vinland Map” hi-res image of the map,2.5 Mb Quote: "...date of 1434 A.D. plus or minus 11 years...Recent testing, however, only revealed trace quantities of titanium, whose presence may be a result of contamination, the chemical deterioration of the ink over the centuries, or may even have been present naturally in the ink used in medieval times. Another recent study detected carbon, which has also been presented as evidence of a forgery. However, carbon can also be found in medieval ink. Current carbon-dating technology does not permit the dating of samples as small as the actual ink lines on the map...."
• Nature, 1 August 2002: New fight over old map. Debate over oldest map of America flares again
• Welcome to The Ohio State Univ. Department of Economics: The Vinland Map, Some "Finer Points" of the Debate, J. Huston McCulloch, August, 2001
• "The Viking Deception", an episode of Nova, first aired on PBS on February 8, 2005
• "Vinland Re-read" by Paul Saenger (Newberry Library), particularly focussing on details of the map purchase
• Review of a book thesis with alleged connection of the fraud with the German jesuit Josef Fischer in the 1930ties

Nova is a popular science television series from the USA produced by WGBH and can be seen on PBS and in more than 100 countries. ... Not to be confused with Public Broadcasting Services in Malta. ... is the 39th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Sources

• Charles Choi, "Drawing the Lines. Is a pre-Columbus map of North America truly a hoax?", Scientific American, 2004 March. Popular science article about Olin's findings.