93 - Lewis Carroll’s Ocean Chart
This map is an illustration in ‘The Hunting of the Snark (An Agony in 8 Fits)’, a nonsensical and somewhat grim poem by Lewis Carroll, who is better known for ‘Alice in Wonderland’. All the illustrations in ‘Snark’, first published in 1876, are by Henry Holiday, whom I therefore suppose to also be the author of this map.
The map is an Ocean Chart owned by the Bellman, one of the main characters in the book. It helps the Bellman and his fellow adventurers, who are hunting for a legendary beast called the Snark, to cross the ocean and arrive at a strange land. The absurdity of the map is that it only shows ocean, literally illustrating nothing, and therefore cannot be a very helpful navigating tool. Here’s an extract from ‘Snark’ relating to said map:
He had bought a large map representing the sea,
Without the least vestige of land:
And the crew were much pleased when they found it to be
A map they could all understand.
“What’s the good of Mercator’s North Poles and Equators,
Tropics, Zones, and Meridian Lines?”
So the Bellman would cry: and the crew would reply
“They are merely conventional signs!
“Other maps are such shapes, with their islands and capes!
But we’ve got our brave Captain to thank:
(So the crew would protest) “that he’s bought us the best—
A perfect and absolute blank!”
This comment has been intentionally left blank.
Comment by Gochi — March 27, 2007 @
[...] Strange Maps, a favorite site of mine for many reasons, this fine chart posted today belongs to the Bellman in Lewis Carroll’s “The Hunting of the [...]
Pingback by Unproductivity :: You may be here — March 27, 2007 @
a nonsensical and somewhat grim poem
Now, wait a minute! This is one of my all time favorite reasonable maps. It is so much more sense than the way Alaska is mapped, http://ykalaska.wordpress.com/2006/06/13/where-is-state-of-alaska/
(by the way, The Snark isn’t really a poem, but an agony with eight fits. See Martin Gardner’s annotations.)
Comment by mpb — March 28, 2007 @
[...] apt to tittup. All definitions from the Shorter Oxford English, 1933 edition. Strangemaps triumphs again, reminding us almost by accident that Lewis Carroll was so good; but blog of today [...]
Pingback by harry potter & the double edged sword « Uncle Zip’s Window — April 3, 2007 @
How Come no good comments
Comment by Sara — April 3, 2007 @
[...] Wednesday, April 4th, 2007 in Navigation From Strange Maps: [...]
Pingback by Lewis Carroll's Ocean Chart « — April 4, 2007 @
[...] You can read more about this map at strange maps. [...]
Pingback by Map of the Ocean « The Greatest Story Ever Told — April 5, 2007 @
For a ’similar’ map, take a look at the USGS 7.5′ quad of Rozel Point SW, Utah.
Comment by GMOstroff — April 30, 2007 @
A good friend made an expedition to Iceland and bought for much money all maps of the country. But 60 % of the maps were white… because of the snow… So, this is reality^^
Comment by Bastian Dietz — June 1, 2007 @