I am a preparing to write a chapter in the forthcoming *History of
Cartography* (Vol 2, Bk.3) on indigenous map making in Africa and am
wondering if the users of H-AFRICA can provide me with some leads.
I have already authored a short piece on "African maps and map
making" in the forthcoming *Encyclopedia of the History of Science,
Technology, and Medicine in Non-Western Cultures* edited by Helaine
Selin (New York: Garland Publishing Co.) in which I refer to Tigrean
circle maps, King Njoya's maps, Sultan Bello's map, and a number of
"ground maps" drawn in the sand by Africans upon the request of
European explorers. Previous chapters in this multi-volume work
cover Egyptian and Islamic map making, the latter including some
north African map making traditions.
The definition of a map used by *The History* is fairly generous:
"Maps are graphic representations that facilitate a spatial
understanding of the things, concepts, conditions, processes, or
events in the human world. World's mapped can be geographical,
celestial, or cosmographical, and the act of map making can range
from records of ephemeral images to conventional aspects of
material culture such as painted surfaces or carved objects"
Inspired by the work of art historians, I am intending to include
graphic representations in various media (wood, clay, cloth, gourds,
the human body) that contain mapping elements (e.g cardinal
directions). I would be grateful to receive any references to
instances and/or examples of African map making that I might include
in this chapter. Thanks.