Some time after the fall of the Roman empire, cartographic studies came to a standstill (in the west). It looked like this:
Maps were still made in Europe…but not for navigational purposes. No, really. We’re so accustomed to maps as guides telling us how-to-get-there that my mind boggles at them being anything else. Even those fun illustrated tourist maps show you how-to-get-there. But look at these T and O maps (Below) No one was going to find their way anywhere using these:
T and O is from the Latin orbis terrarum, meaning orb of the lands. This clover map (Below) spells out the real purpose of these medieval maps:
The medieval T & O map, the Clover Map, the Mappa Mundi, (from the Latin mappa [cloth or chart] and mundi [of the world] ) are meant to show Jerusalem, Christ, as the center of the world. They are meant as guides to the bible, to religion. They point you to god, and you’re not going anywhere else.
Go back to the T&O maps. The one on the left has the names of Noah's sons -Sem, Lafeth and Cham- under the names of the continents.
As late as 1280 CE, the Ebstorf Map (Below) has Christ’s head at top, his hands at the sides, his feet at the bottom…and Jerusalem right in the middle (with scenes of his life depicted throughout the world). From the History of the World in 12 Maps: “They fused classical & biblical places to project a history of Christian creation, salvation & judgement onto the surface of a map”.
Yes, this is huge simplification. Many early maps were combinations of cartography and religion. Non- European maps focused on land (or the stars!). But this European Map-as-Bible-Guide was the norm in the Dark Ages. From the History of the World in 12 Maps:
…is not a map as we understand it in any modern sense. Instead, it is an image of the world defined by theology, not geography, where place is understood by faith rather than location, and the passage of time according to biblical events is more important than the depiction of territorial space.
(Above) The Hereford Mappa Mundi has geographical components, but ….Jerusalem is in the center, Eden at the top, and religious references are given far more priority than cartographic accuracy.
There’s a great 15 minute video which gives a easily understandable explanation: