Gerardus Mercator

Gerhard Mercator ( born March 5, 1512 Rupelmonde, Count of Flanders, † December 2, 1594 in Duisburg, United Duchies of Jülich- Kleve -Berg ) was a geographer and cartographer, who was regarded as far back as the Ptolemy of his time and until the Arab-Islamic world was famous. He was actually called Gerard de Kremer ( Latinized Gerardus Mercator, German Gerhard Krämer).

Known today primarily as a cartographer and globe maker, Mercator was in the 16th century as Kosmograf, theologian and philosopher of great importance and set new standards as a lettering artist. In Mercator, the Foundation Founded in 1996, Mercator, which is devoted to intercultural knowledge exchange refers.

• 2.1 Globes
• 2.2 Card
• 2.3 cosmography
• 2.4 Atlas
• 2.5 calligraphy

Life

Childhood and education

Gerhard De Kremer was born the sixth child of Hubert De Cremer and his wife Emerance in Rupelmonde. He spent his childhood in Gangelt, where his father was a shoemaker. After his father's death in 1526, Gerhard was educated at the Brethren of the Common Life in 's-Hertogenbosch. Here was, among other Georgius Macropedius his teacher.

From 1530 Gerhard studied at the University of Louvain, was in 1532 a doctoral thesis MA and subsequently operating private study of theology, philosophy and mathematics, especially in their practical applications (maps, globes and instruments). 1534-1537 Mercator was involved as an employee at Gemma Frisius in the creation of the terrestrial and celestial globes.

Family formation

In 1536 he married Barbera Schellekens, who gave birth to her first son Arnold in 1537. In 1537 he created a first card Terrae Sanctae descriptio ad amplissima utriusque Testamenti intelligentiam. In 1538 he created his first world map. In the same year his first daughter was born, was baptized according to Mercator's mother Emerance. 1539 was followed by a second daughter Dorothéa.

Also in 1539 brought out a Mercator map of Flanders, which earned him the attention of the king. 1541 Mercator brought out his first globe, which sold in large numbers for decades. 1540 and 1541 the two sons Bartholomew and Rumold were born. 1542 followed as the sixth and last child of the daughter Catherine.

Whether Mercator has acquired the theological doctorate, is questionable. In 1544 he was charged with " Lutherey " arrested (ie, as a supporter of Martin Luther's Reformation ) and imprisoned for many months. During this time the main scientific work of Philipp Melanchthon, Initia Doctrinae Physicae ( 1549), is likely to have exerted great influence on the Mercator appeared. The recently discovered correspondence with Melanchthon has not yet been evaluated.

1551 Mercator produced for the first time the complementary celestial globe on his globe of 1541st Henceforth these globes were usually sold in pairs, of which still exist at least 22.

Moving to Duisburg

1551 invited him William the Rich, a professor to be for cosmography at the newly established University of Duisburg. Mercator accepted the offer and moved in 1552 to Duisburg; whether religious reasons played a decisive role is controversial. Anyway, he lived safely in the religiously tolerance town in the duchy of Cleves before hostilities.

From 1559 to 1562 he worked at the newly established Academic High School in Duisburg, today's Landfermann High School, worked as a teacher of mathematics and cosmography. A student was Mercator's 1562 John Corputius, which was named after him exceptionally accurate Cityscape Duisburg made ​​1566. The founding of the University did not come off to Mercator's lifetime, although the Duke had received papal permission in 1564 and 1566 and the imperial privilege establishing.

The large world map

With its large world map of 1569 ( Nova et orbis terrae descriptio ad usum aucta navigantium ) Mercator gained world fame. Possibly inspired by Erhard Etzlaub, he developed a until today because of their loyalty angle for navigation ( and aviation ) are important projection, which became known as " Mercator projection ". According to John Vermeulen Mercator has worked with his contemporary Abraham Ortelius.

In the 1570s Mercator published theological writings, which were unknown until recently, at least unnoticed mostly. He dealt with the theology of the Swiss Reformed Church. He also seems to have been stimulated by the so-called "Christian physics " of Lambertus Danaeus, a pupil of Calvin.

About the same time the world map appeared Mercator theologically influenced world history Chronologie. Hoc est temporum demonstratio exactissima, ab initio mundi usque ad annum Domini MDLXVIII (1568). After another cartographic work was followed in 1590 the comment of Romans, which is so far available only in manuscript in Leiden, where he developed the theological- systematic foundations for his cosmography.

The main work

Shortly before his death, Mercator completed the main work, the cosmography Atlas, sive de Fabrica Mundi et Cosmographicae Meditationes Fabricati figura, which was published posthumously in 1595 by Mercator's son Rumold. So far the cards have been noted mainly, occasionally they appeared even without the text. Particularly noteworthy is the Christological orientation that differs fundamentally from the medieval Kosmografien up to Sebastian Münster.

Mercator died in 1594 as a respected and rich man. His grave in the Salvator Church in Duisburg is lost, only his magnificent epitaph is still there.

Work

Globes

• Collaboration on terrestrial globe of Gemma Frisius
• A terrestrial globe of 1541 with 41 cm diameter and rhumb lines
• A celestial globe of 1551 with 41 cm diameter

Maps

• Terrae Sanctae descriptio ad amplissima utriusque Testamenti intelligentiam a wall map of the Holy Land from 6 sheets of 1537.
• A wall map of Flanders, in nine sheets 1540.
• A world map in Heart-shaped projection of the northern and southern hemispheres.

From Duisburg period we know only four wall maps:

• European descriptio, a wall map of Europe from 1554 to 15 sheets ( 159 × 132 cm) ( 1572 revised). With the appearance of this card already long outdated Ptolemaic world view has been largely corrected. The mutual position of the European countries is displayed correctly the first time. For one and a half centuries served Mercator's map of Europe as a benchmark.
• A map of Lorraine 1563/1564.
• Angliae, et Scotiæ Hiberniæ nova descriptio, a wall map of the British Isles in eight sheets of 1564th
• Nova et orbis terrae descriptio ad usum aucta navigantium emendate accomodata, 1569, the large wall map of the world in 21 blades with a total size of 134 × 212 cm.

This last card can rightly be called Mercator's masterpiece. It is the first map of the world in which a conformal projection was used.

Cosmography

After the issue of the world map Mercator moved more and more to the production of a cosmography. Mercator had big plans: a huge kosmografisches work on the creation, the origin and its history.

The first ideas for that he wrote in 1569 in the introduction to his Chronologia. The cosmography would consist of five parts:

• The creation of the world. After his death, published as Introduction to the Atlas ( 1595 ).
• Description of Heaven ( never published )
• Description of the countries and lakes into three parts: Modern Geography. The atlas, unfinished, see below;
• Ptolemy's maps. Edited 1578th
• Ancient Geography. (not realized ).

Mercator's scientific attitude became his destiny. He repeatedly postponed in the hope of new information the publication of his work. The cartographic part of his cosmography was therefore only partially completed.

At first his Ptolemy edition of 1578 was made. Mercator saw this issue merely as a representation of the world based on the ideas of classical authors. The 28 Ptolemaic maps are never inserted in another Atlas, while they were still re-issued in 1730.

It was only in 1585, fifteen years after the issue of the Theatrum, Mercator came with an unfinished edition of his ' modern geography '.

The card book includes 51 maps: 16 from France, nine of the Netherlands and 26 from Germany. Of these countries, he had the most reliable descriptions. Each part has its own title page: Galliae Tabulae Geographicae, Belgii inferioris Geographicae Tabulae and Germaniae tabulae Geographicae. The whole had no title.

In the year 1589 was followed by 22 maps of South-Eastern Europe, Italiae, Sclavoniae et Graeciae tabulae Geographicae. Mercator unfortunately did not have the opportunity to expand according to its original plan his Tabulae Geographicae a real world atlas with a circumference of about 120 cards.

A year after his death was his son Rumold Mercator supplementation with 34 cards out. Herein are 29 of Gerhard Mercator engraved maps of the missing parts of Europe ( Iceland, the British Isles and the Northern and Eastern European countries).

Atlas

Rumolds " complete edition " has its own title page and preface. The title is The Atlas sive Cosmographicae Meditationes de Fabrica Mundi et Fabricati Figura (Atlas or kosmografische Meditations on the creation of the world and the shape of creation).

The choice of the title Atlas Mercator explained in the introduction. Thereafter, the name of the mythical king and the first astrologers Atlas of Mauritania is derived, which was representation and beige discontinued genealogy of the Atlas of Greek mythology, according to Mercator. Mercator refers back to the stories in Diodorus.

" My destiny is thus to imitate this atlas, one in erudition, humanity and wisdom so outstanding man, how to look at it from a high watchtower from the cosmography, as far as my strength and ability allow it to see if I might can be found through my diligence some truths in yet unknown things that could serve the study of wisdom. "

Atlas is pictured on the frontispiece of Mercator's Atlas with a sky and an earth globe.

The work begins with a biography of Gerardus Mercator, written by the Duisburg alderman Walter Ghim, followed by the Atlas mythology. The first part is Mercator's work on the creation Mundi Creatione Fabrica et Liber. The card 107 form the second part.

Mercator saw himself more as a scientific cosmographer, and not as someone who had to earn his living with the manufacture and sale of cards. His production was not quite extensive: we know twelve Globes Couples ( heaven and earth ), five wall maps, many maps of regions with world maps and a chronology ( with Gospel Harmony ) and cosmography. In Duisburg, a monument to him was put on the town hall square in 1878. Many of his works are now exhibited in the treasury of Culture and City Historical Museum of the City of Duisburg.

Calligraphy

It is indicative of his understanding as a scientist of the Renaissance, that the clarity of his thinking was imbued with a high demand on the aesthetics of representation. In the history of the development of writing Mercator also takes up an important place as a writing master.

In 1540 he brought a guide to writing the Italian cursive ( italic ) out: Literarum Latinarum, quas Italicas, cursoriasque vocant scribendarum ratio He was not only the first font artists north of the Alps, in the context of a writing master book this space-saving and clear Latin font against Gothic font popularized, but he was also the first to use this italic for marking the cards.

His teachings (52 pages) were initially cut into wood and learned in the same year as well as 1549, 1550, 1556 and 1557 reprints. In the later use of engraving the elegant design of this font could be deployed more effectively. Mercator thus continuing aesthetic standards for the labeling of the cards and so coined the map style for the next two hundred years.

Aftermath

The University of Duisburg, founded in 1655, had the name of Gerhard Mercator University until the University of Essen to the new University of Duisburg-Essen merged in 2003 since 1994. On Campus Duisburg is the Mercator School of Management.

Furthermore, the Duisburg Mercator -Gymnasium, a local primary school, a meeting and convention center ( Mercatorhalle ), a shopping center in Meiderich and a Moers Berufskolleg are named after him, as is the southern ring road Mercatorstraße / Kremer street in the inner city of Duisburg and Duisburg pleasure boat. In the Mercator barracks in Euskirchen the Geoinformation Office of the German army is stationed, among other things.

Since 1950, the Mercator Society Duisburg consists eV - Association for History and History.

The Mercator plaque for outstanding service, and in particular scientific or artistic field is awarded by the city of Duisburg in irregular intervals. Carriers were previously as founding directors of the University of Duisburg as well as cultural ministers and general music directors, but also the actor Hans Caninenberg and the painter Heinz Trökes.

In addition, the Mercator Foundation exists. This foundation is one of the major foundations in Germany, in the areas of integration, climate change and cultural education is particularly active. Projects, such as " tuition for children and young people with a migration background ", " jamtruck " reflect the diversity of possible exposures.

The lunar crater Mercator was named after him in 1935.

Museums and exhibitions

• The world's only dedicated Mercator Museum located in Sint -Niklaas (Belgium ). It shows the life and work of Mercator.
• The Culture and City Museum Duisburg shows Mercator's work in a separate area, the treasury, with valuable maps, books and globes.
• Mercator atlases in the University Library of Duisburg- Essen, Campus Duisburg: permanent exhibition from 29 January 1997.
• 500 years Gerhard Mercator - From the Renaissance to the world map image of modernity; from 10 March to 10 June 2012 at the Museum of Art and Cultural History; Special exhibition of the Sponsorship Survey Technical Museum eV at the Museum of Art and Cultural History

Works

• Gerardus Mercator: Literarum Latinarum, quas Italicas, cursoriasque vocant, scribendarum ratio, Louvain 1540; Edition: Facs. Louvain in 1540; Released: Nieuwkoop: Milan Publ, 1970.
• Evangelicae historiae quadripartita Monas, immersive Harmonia quatuor Evangelistarum ... / digesta et demonstrata by Gerardum Mercatorem. - Duysburgi. Cliuorum, 1592 Digitized edition of the University and State Library Dusseldorf
• Germaniae tabulae Geographicae. - Duisburg. Gerhard Mercator Elder, 1594 Digitized edition. 1 Germaniae tabulae Geographicae. 1594th
• 2 Galliae tabulae Geographicae. 1594th
• 3 Belgii inferioris Geographicae tabulae. 1594th