The sea monsters on medieval and Renaissance maps, whether swimming
vigorously, gamboling amid the waves, attacking ships, or simply
displaying themselves for our appreciation, are one of the most visually
engaging elements on these maps, and yet they have never been carefully
studied. The subject is important not only in the history of
cartography, art, and zoological illustration, but also in the history
of the geography of the "marvelous" and of western conceptions of the
ocean. Moreover, the sea monsters depicted on maps can supply important
insights into the sources, influences, and methods of the cartographers
who drew or painted them. In this highly-illustrated book the author
analyzes the most important examples of sea monsters on medieval and
Renaissance maps produced in Europe, beginning with the earliest
mappaemundi on which they appear in the 10th century and continuing to
the end of the 16th century.