Mappa Mundi of Andreas Walsperger

Mappa Mundi of Andreas Walsperger

In the Christian idea of the world, Earth is at the center of seven celestial spheres. The image of the world was primarily based on the discoveries of the scholar Ptolemy. Parts of the medieval population envisaged the earth as a round disc with Jerusalem in the middle. Some Christian scholars disseminated this concept in scholarly works and above all with the help of illustrated maps. An especially beautiful map, which depicts the earth as a disc, is the mappa mundi – a schematic map of the medieval world view – by the Benedictine monk Andreas Walsperger. The map shows the roundness of the Earth and its surrounding celestial spheres. Zodiac symbols decorate the frame of the depiction.

The Creator of the World Map

Andreas Walsperger was born the son of a carpenter in Redkersburg ca. 1415. He became a monk at the Benedictine monastery of St. Peter in Salzburg in 1434, yet he left the monastery in 1442. Where else he might have lived, as well as the year of his death, has not been passed down. The Mappa mundi by Andreas Walsperger, which he made ca. 1448 in Constance, is one of the few original maps from the German-speaking area to survive. It is considered to be a milestone of historical cartography and is stored today in the Vatican Library.

An Artistic Tour de Force

The precious map is drawn in six natural colors and was embellished with elements of gold leaf. The majority of the orbis terrarium is taken up by the round field of the earth is aligned properly with geographic south at the top and north at the bottom. The Holy City of Jerusalem is found approximately in the center of the disc. The land is surrounded by the ocean. The seven celestial spheres are depicted as seven colored rings which are broken up by circles. These round forms represent the planets, the fixed stars, and the sun. The names of the zodiac signs and the winds at the margin of the earthly depiction are also noted. The map is an astounding document of the Christian worldview and represents a valuable tradition of earlier scientific findings.