
Maps and Mapping: “Sebastian Münster’s Cosmography: Making Maps and Imaging Germany” (Hybrid)
Zsolt G. Török (Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest)
March 6, 2025
6 pm (CET)
Venue:
Berlin-Brandenburgische Akademie der Wissenschaften
Einstein-Saal
Jägerstraße 22/23
10117 Berlin
For registration, online participation and more information, please visit the BBAW event page.
Sebastian Münster’s “Cosmographia”, first published in 1544, became the most influential cosmography of the 16th century, making complex geographical knowledge accessible to a broad audience. In 1992, Zsolt G. Török published a new edition of Münster’s New World map, analysing the production of his woodcut illustrations. Initially seen as a mere compiler of lost maps, Münster should be recognised as a pioneering mapmaker. His “Cosmographia” remains captivating to both historical and modern audiences. This raises key questions: How did a scholarly description of the whole world become a commercial success? How did Münster, a reserved scholar, transform cosmography into a popular text for the German public? How can we evaluate his influence?
LECTURE WITH DIALOGUE
Zsolt G. Török (Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest)
Discussant:
Petra Svatek (Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften, Wien)
Part of the Lecture Series Maps and Mapping in Global History and Culture II, organized by Dagmar Schäfer, Vera Dorofeeva-Lichtmann and Ute Tintemann.
In cooperation with the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Max Plank Institute for the History of Science

