--- title: "What year was Maps invented and how?" description: "What year was Maps invented and how?" author: "Cox elliott" published: 2018-08-30 canonical: https://answers.mindstick.com/qa/49240/what-year-was-maps-invented-and-how category: "innovation, discovery and technology" tags: ["innovation, discovery and technology"] reading_time: 2 minutes --- # What year was Maps invented and how? What year was [Maps](https://www.mindstick.com/interview/1164/how-are-site-maps-important-for-the-search-engine-optimization-process) invented and how?\ \ \ ## Answers ### Answer by Harshal Vispute The **oldest** known **globe maps** come from **ancient antiquity**, with the earliest versions dating from the **6th to 5th** **centuries BCE** still using the flat **Earth model**. The first world maps are based on a spherical Earth date from the **Hellenistic period**. The innovations in **Greek geography** during this time, particularly those of **Eratosthenes** and **Posidonius**, culminated in the **Roman era**, with **Ptolemy's world map (2nd century CE**), which would remain authoritative throughout the **Middle Ages**. \ Since **Ptolemy**, **cartographers** have been able to evaluate the amount of their **geographical knowledge** by indicating portions of the world that are known to exist but have yet to be surveyed as terra incognita. World maps improved inaccuracy during the **Age of Discovery**, from the **15th** to the **18th centuries**; exploration of **[Antarctica](https://answers.mindstick.com/qa/48565/when-was-the-god-of-antarctica-written)**, **[Australia](https://answers.mindstick.com/qa/62179/name-the-india-born-women-who-won-the-miss-universe-australia-2019-title)**, and the interior of **[Africa](https://answers.mindstick.com/qa/52039/where-did-google-open-its-first-africa-artificial-intelligence-lab)** by western mapmakers was left to the **19th** and early **20th centuries**. \ **Anaximander** (**about 546 BCE**) is credited with creating one of the first global maps, which was circular in shape and depicted all of the known globe's territories gathered around the **Aegean Sea** in the middle. Everything was encircled by the sea. \ **Eratosthenes** (**276–194 BCE**) enhanced the globe map by adding knowledge from **Alexander the Great's** and his successors' campaigns. **[Asia](https://answers.mindstick.com/qa/52029/which-country-is-hosting-2019-asia-badminton-championships)** grew in size, reflecting a better understanding of the continent's true size. Eratosthenes was also the first geographer to use parallels and meridians in his cartographic representations, demonstrating his awareness of the Earth's spherical shape. --- Original Source: https://answers.mindstick.com/qa/49240/what-year-was-maps-invented-and-how Copyright © MindStick Software Pvt. Ltd. This Markdown version is provided for developers, AI systems, and offline reading.