Ostrich Egg Globe

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Mundus Novus depicted on the globe

The Ostrich Egg Globe, is an Italian Renaissance object of historical importance. It dates from about 1504 and is the first known globe to depict the New World. It is the prototype for the Hunt–Lenox Globe, a red copper cast.

Background[]

See also: Erdapfel

Stefaan Missinne argues that a drawing found in Leonardo da Vinci’s papers of a hitherto unknown map of the world depicting the coast of Brazil was a 1503 preparatory drawing for the globe.[1][predatory publisher][a] If actually by Leonardo it suggests that he knew of Christopher Columbus's discovery of America. The globe, dating from 1504, is the first extant globe to depict the New World.[4]

Description[]

The hollow globe is made from the conjoined lower halves of two ostrich eggs.[4] In the bottom half of the lower part a counterweight made of calcium and glued with egg white was added to keep the globe upright as the globe has no mounting.[5][predatory publisher]

The scale of the globe is 1:80,000,000 and its diameter is about 11.2 cm. It weighs 134 grams. The North–South axis is vertical, reflecting the thinking of Aristotle.[6] The globe's twin, the Hunt-Lenox Globe (at the New York Public Library), is a cast made of red copper[4] representing the Earth in the center of an armillary sphere.

The globe depicts numerous subjects, including ships, a volcano, sailors, a monster, ocean waves, conic mountains, rivers, coastal lines, and a triangular anagram.[7][predatory publisher]

Discovery and provenance[]

The globe was offered for sale in 2012 at the London Map Fair held at the Royal Geographical Society.[4] Its similarity to the Lenox Globe was confirmed in 2012 by the former president of the Coronelli Society, Professor Rudolf Schmidt, and confirmed by art expert Archduke Dr. Géza von Habsburg in 2013.[8] In August 2012, Discover published one of the first popular general articles about the globe.[9]

Analysis by Italian researcher Elisabetta Gnignera finds that the hairstyle of a drowning marine depicted in an engraving are compatible with the date and provenance of the globe.[10][predatory publisher] Leonardo owned this codex, and it is the only known manuscript with annotations by him.[11][predatory publisher]

On the globe's lower half, there is a red copper droplet that contains arsenic, a chemical substance only known to be prescribed by Leonardo, to be added to copper to maintain its red color[12][predatory publisher][b] Visual observation of photographs of the Lenox Globe seems to support this as it does not display any green or black patina, which is normal for copper exposed to air.[14]

Art Reception[]

The latest research has shown that the Jagiellonian globe also known as the Globus Jagellonicus which dates from 1510 bears a striking resemblance to the Lenox and the Ostrich Egg globe. It has been attributed to the French Clockmaker Jean Coudray who appears to have copied an Italian Armillary Sphere based on a blueprint designed by Leonardo da Vinci[15][predatory publisher]

See also[]

References[]

Footnotes

  1. ^ In 1503, Italian explorer Amerigo Vespucci wrote a letter to Lorenzo di Pierfrancesco, in which he declares that the landmass discovered by Christopher Columbus could be considered a hitherto unknown continent.[2][3]
  2. ^ Leonardo writes in Codex Atlanticus page 1103 verso: "Metti nella mistura il rame arso, ovvero la corrompi collo arsenico, ma sarà frangibile" ("Put the burnt copper into the mixture, or you corrupt it with arsenic, but it will be breakable").[13]

Citations

  1. ^ Missinne, Stefaan; Verhoeven, Geert (2019). "Leonardo Depicted America: Misread as the Moon". Advances in Historical Studies. 08 (4): 139–147. doi:10.4236/ahs.2019.84011. hdl:1854/LU-8628436.
  2. ^ Fernández-Armesto, Felipe (2007). Amerigo: The Man Who Gave His Name to America. New York: Random House. p. 73. ISBN 978-1-4000-6281-2.
  3. ^ Davidson, M. H. (1997). Columbus Then and Now: A Life Re-examined. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, p. 417.
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b c d Kim, Meeri (19 August 2013). "Oldest globe to depict the New World may have been discovered". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
  5. ^ Missine 2018, p. 250
  6. ^ Missine 2018, p. 129
  7. ^ Missine 2018, pp. 137–175
  8. ^ Missinne, Stefaan (Fall 2013). "A Newly Discovered Early Sixteenth-Century Globe Engraved on an Ostrich Egg: The Earliest Surviving Globe Showing the New World" (PDF). The Portolan: Journal of the Washington Map Society (87): 8–24.
  9. ^ Draxler, Breanna (19 August 2013). "Engraved Ostrich Egg Globe is Oldest to Depict the New World". Discover.
  10. ^ Missine 2018, p. 140
  11. ^ Missine 2018, p. 160
  12. ^ Missine 2018, pp. 56, 243
  13. ^ Codex Atlanticus page 1103.
  14. ^ Missine 2018, pp. 46
  15. ^ Missinne, Stefaan (2021). "America's Name Baptized on a Globe in 1510. Leonardo da Vinci's Blueprint for the Jagiellonian Armillary Sphere Discovered". Advances in Historical Studies. 10: 93–133. doi:10.4236/ahs.2021.101008. S2CID 233622396.
Bibliography

Further reading[]

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