The Map Room
@maproomblog.com
A blog by @jonathancrowe.net about maps in all their forms, on and off since 2003. maproomblog.com
Email digest: maproomblog.com/about/subscribe
Mastodon: mapstodon.space/@maproomblog
Support via Patreon: patreon.com/jonathancrowe
Email digest: maproomblog.com/about/subscribe
Mastodon: mapstodon.space/@maproomblog
Support via Patreon: patreon.com/jonathancrowe
Miguel García Álvarez looks at the maps of Leonardo da Vinci. “Leonardo never wrote a treatise on geography, as Ptolemy did, but his understanding of the territory and the importance of finding effective ways to… More
Da Vinci’s Maps
Miguel García Álvarez looks at the maps of Leonardo da Vinci. “Leonardo never wrote a treatise on geography, as Ptolemy did, but his understanding of the territory and the importance of finding effective ways to… More
www.maproomblog.com
February 17, 2026 at 1:42 PM
Miguel García Álvarez looks at the maps of Leonardo da Vinci. “Leonardo never wrote a treatise on geography, as Ptolemy did, but his understanding of the territory and the importance of finding effective ways to… More
The Bad Map Projection series of xkcd cartoons are mischievous and brain-melting but often as not come with a kernel of truth. Last Friday’s is a case of geomagnetorectification, distorting the map to line up… More
A Zero Declination World Map
The Bad Map Projection series of xkcd cartoons are mischievous and brain-melting but often as not come with a kernel of truth. Last Friday’s is a case of geomagnetorectification, distorting the map to line up… More
www.maproomblog.com
February 16, 2026 at 6:56 PM
The Bad Map Projection series of xkcd cartoons are mischievous and brain-melting but often as not come with a kernel of truth. Last Friday’s is a case of geomagnetorectification, distorting the map to line up… More
Reposted by The Map Room
You should definitely consider picking up a Weekend FT today, because it's the magazine MAPS special. Radical cartography, maps that changed the world, an FT reader competition that almost started a war, they don't love you like i love you, MAPS! www.ft.com/content/efab...
Maps remade
An FT Magazine special feature on how to map a changing world
www.ft.com
February 14, 2026 at 7:46 AM
You should definitely consider picking up a Weekend FT today, because it's the magazine MAPS special. Radical cartography, maps that changed the world, an FT reader competition that almost started a war, they don't love you like i love you, MAPS! www.ft.com/content/efab...
This week on The Map Room:
WCVB’s Chronicle Looks at Maps
www.maproomblog.com/2026/02/wcvb...
Warning Signs
www.maproomblog.com/2026/02/warn...
Toronto's New Transit Map, and Its Mapmaker
www.maproomblog.com/2026/02/toro...
WCVB’s Chronicle Looks at Maps
www.maproomblog.com/2026/02/wcvb...
Warning Signs
www.maproomblog.com/2026/02/warn...
Toronto's New Transit Map, and Its Mapmaker
www.maproomblog.com/2026/02/toro...
February 13, 2026 at 9:52 PM
This week on The Map Room:
WCVB’s Chronicle Looks at Maps
www.maproomblog.com/2026/02/wcvb...
Warning Signs
www.maproomblog.com/2026/02/warn...
Toronto's New Transit Map, and Its Mapmaker
www.maproomblog.com/2026/02/toro...
WCVB’s Chronicle Looks at Maps
www.maproomblog.com/2026/02/wcvb...
Warning Signs
www.maproomblog.com/2026/02/warn...
Toronto's New Transit Map, and Its Mapmaker
www.maproomblog.com/2026/02/toro...
Reposted by The Map Room
Globes for days! Have greatly enjoyed tagging along as the brilliant Sylvia Sumira has assessed our globes @rgsibg.bsky.social this week. #conservation #globes 🌏 📚🗃️
February 11, 2026 at 4:00 PM
Globes for days! Have greatly enjoyed tagging along as the brilliant Sylvia Sumira has assessed our globes @rgsibg.bsky.social this week. #conservation #globes 🌏 📚🗃️
With two new light rail lines opening in Toronto recently, the Toronto Transit Commission has had to update the maps of its subway, light rail and streetcar network, which appear in its stations and vehicles.… More
Toronto’s New Transit Map, and Its Mapmaker
With two new light rail lines opening in Toronto recently, the Toronto Transit Commission has had to update the maps of its subway, light rail and streetcar network, which appear in its stations and vehicles.… More
www.maproomblog.com
February 10, 2026 at 1:17 AM
With two new light rail lines opening in Toronto recently, the Toronto Transit Commission has had to update the maps of its subway, light rail and streetcar network, which appear in its stations and vehicles.… More
Adam Simmons sees some warning signs for geographers and the geospatial industry after watching the archives of the American Geographical Society’s 2025 Symposium (see the YouTube playlist). The event, held back in November at Columbia… More
Warning Signs
Adam Simmons sees some warning signs for geographers and the geospatial industry after watching the archives of the American Geographical Society’s 2025 Symposium (see the YouTube playlist). The event, held back in November at Columbia… More
www.maproomblog.com
February 10, 2026 at 12:16 AM
Adam Simmons sees some warning signs for geographers and the geospatial industry after watching the archives of the American Geographical Society’s 2025 Symposium (see the YouTube playlist). The event, held back in November at Columbia… More
Looks like Boston TV channel WCVB’s Chronicle newsmagazine turned its attention to maps last week: there were profiles of Map Center owner Andrew Middleton, cartographer Andy Woodruff and the Leventhal Map Center, plus pieces on… More
WCVB’s Chronicle Looks at Maps
Looks like Boston TV channel WCVB’s Chronicle newsmagazine turned its attention to maps last week: there were profiles of Map Center owner Andrew Middleton, cartographer Andy Woodruff and the Leventhal Map Center, plus pieces on… More
www.maproomblog.com
February 9, 2026 at 11:54 PM
Looks like Boston TV channel WCVB’s Chronicle newsmagazine turned its attention to maps last week: there were profiles of Map Center owner Andrew Middleton, cartographer Andy Woodruff and the Leventhal Map Center, plus pieces on… More
Classroom materials and maps produced by the Utah Historical Society for the State of Utah’s commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States include this rather interesting map of the peoples… More
The Peoples of North America in 1776
Classroom materials and maps produced by the Utah Historical Society for the State of Utah’s commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States include this rather interesting map of the peoples… More
www.maproomblog.com
February 5, 2026 at 11:57 PM
Classroom materials and maps produced by the Utah Historical Society for the State of Utah’s commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States include this rather interesting map of the peoples… More
On The Conversation, James Cheshire looks at the Cold War-era maps that news magazines commissioned to explain the geopolitical situation to their readers. “Their maps were large, dramatic and designed to be spread across kitchen… More
The Cold War Seen Through Polar Projections
On The Conversation, James Cheshire looks at the Cold War-era maps that news magazines commissioned to explain the geopolitical situation to their readers. “Their maps were large, dramatic and designed to be spread across kitchen… More
www.maproomblog.com
February 5, 2026 at 11:49 PM
On The Conversation, James Cheshire looks at the Cold War-era maps that news magazines commissioned to explain the geopolitical situation to their readers. “Their maps were large, dramatic and designed to be spread across kitchen… More
Daniel Huffman gives us a behind-the-scenes look at “the ‘selling mappy goods’ side of the business, in my tradition of being open about my finances. I can’t say whether my experience is typical, but you might find… More
The Business of Selling Map Prints
Daniel Huffman gives us a behind-the-scenes look at “the ‘selling mappy goods’ side of the business, in my tradition of being open about my finances. I can’t say whether my experience is typical, but you might find… More
www.maproomblog.com
February 5, 2026 at 11:32 PM
Daniel Huffman gives us a behind-the-scenes look at “the ‘selling mappy goods’ side of the business, in my tradition of being open about my finances. I can’t say whether my experience is typical, but you might find… More
More than a hundred map-related events are taking place today (4 February 2026) in France, plus a few elsewhere, as part of the first Jour de la Carte (Day of the Map). Une centaine d’événements… More
Le Jour de la Carte
More than a hundred map-related events are taking place today (4 February 2026) in France, plus a few elsewhere, as part of the first Jour de la Carte (Day of the Map). Une centaine d’événements… More
www.maproomblog.com
February 4, 2026 at 1:20 PM
More than a hundred map-related events are taking place today (4 February 2026) in France, plus a few elsewhere, as part of the first Jour de la Carte (Day of the Map). Une centaine d’événements… More
Reposted by The Map Room
The Utah Historical Society just produced a new, excellent map of "The Peoples of North America in 1776." Great resource for anyone teaching, writing, presenting about Native peoples as part of their 250th work. america250.utah.gov/power-of-pla...
February 3, 2026 at 1:49 PM
The Utah Historical Society just produced a new, excellent map of "The Peoples of North America in 1776." Great resource for anyone teaching, writing, presenting about Native peoples as part of their 250th work. america250.utah.gov/power-of-pla...
Reposted by The Map Room
New on the blog: "Financial Transparency: Print Sales Edition"
In which I explain my experience in the business of selling maps online.
somethingaboutmaps.wordpress.com/2026/02/02/f...
In which I explain my experience in the business of selling maps online.
somethingaboutmaps.wordpress.com/2026/02/02/f...
February 3, 2026 at 1:46 AM
New on the blog: "Financial Transparency: Print Sales Edition"
In which I explain my experience in the business of selling maps online.
somethingaboutmaps.wordpress.com/2026/02/02/f...
In which I explain my experience in the business of selling maps online.
somethingaboutmaps.wordpress.com/2026/02/02/f...
Mountains are almost ubiquitous in fantasy maps, and almost always drawn in profile, as a line of hill signs. In a Patreon post, mapmaker John Wyatt Greenlee (aka the Surprised Eel Historian) discusses a couple… More
Making Mountains on Maps
Mountains are almost ubiquitous in fantasy maps, and almost always drawn in profile, as a line of hill signs. In a Patreon post, mapmaker John Wyatt Greenlee (aka the Surprised Eel Historian) discusses a couple… More
www.maproomblog.com
January 29, 2026 at 5:18 PM
Mountains are almost ubiquitous in fantasy maps, and almost always drawn in profile, as a line of hill signs. In a Patreon post, mapmaker John Wyatt Greenlee (aka the Surprised Eel Historian) discusses a couple… More
London stationery store Present & Correct has published a book of vintage illustrated tourist maps from Japan. “In 2025 we found the maps rummaging in Tokyo’s Jinbocho area before photographing & collating them into this… More
Pre-War Japanese Tourist Maps
London stationery store Present & Correct has published a book of vintage illustrated tourist maps from Japan. “In 2025 we found the maps rummaging in Tokyo’s Jinbocho area before photographing & collating them into this… More
www.maproomblog.com
January 29, 2026 at 12:31 AM
London stationery store Present & Correct has published a book of vintage illustrated tourist maps from Japan. “In 2025 we found the maps rummaging in Tokyo’s Jinbocho area before photographing & collating them into this… More
A map dealer’s catalogue is not the first place you’d expect to be a locus of resistance. Even so, in the first 2026 catalogue from map dealer Neatline Maps, Kristoffer Damgaard curates a selection of… More
The History of Greenland’s Mapping as Context and Counterpoint
A map dealer’s catalogue is not the first place you’d expect to be a locus of resistance. Even so, in the first 2026 catalogue from map dealer Neatline Maps, Kristoffer Damgaard curates a selection of… More
www.maproomblog.com
January 29, 2026 at 12:16 AM
A map dealer’s catalogue is not the first place you’d expect to be a locus of resistance. Even so, in the first 2026 catalogue from map dealer Neatline Maps, Kristoffer Damgaard curates a selection of… More
Somebody’s been talking about Greenland again, and we’re getting another flurry of articles about how Greenland’s apparent size on maps may be to blame for the obsession.
Greenland, the Mercator, and You-Know-Who
Somebody’s been talking about Greenland again, and we’re getting another flurry of articles about how Greenland’s apparent size on maps may be to blame for the obsession. Last year it was suggested that Trump wanted… More
www.maproomblog.com
January 23, 2026 at 1:57 PM
Somebody’s been talking about Greenland again, and we’re getting another flurry of articles about how Greenland’s apparent size on maps may be to blame for the obsession.
Eclipse Company co-founder Jesse Tomlinson writes: “Since you have many eclipse map posts on your site, I wanted to send a quick message letting you know about our newly rebuilt website, The Eclipse App. In 2023, you wrote… More
The Eclipse App
Eclipse Company co-founder Jesse Tomlinson writes: “Since you have many eclipse map posts on your site, I wanted to send a quick message letting you know about our newly rebuilt website, The Eclipse App. In 2023, you wrote… More
www.maproomblog.com
January 22, 2026 at 7:31 PM
Eclipse Company co-founder Jesse Tomlinson writes: “Since you have many eclipse map posts on your site, I wanted to send a quick message letting you know about our newly rebuilt website, The Eclipse App. In 2023, you wrote… More
A new, far more detailed map of the landscape underneath Antarctica’s ice sheet, generated “by applying the physics of ice flow to ice surface maps and incorporating geophysical ice thickness observations.” There’s an aspect of… More
A New Map of Antarctica Suggests a Complex Landscape Under the Ice Sheet
A new, far more detailed map of the landscape underneath Antarctica’s ice sheet, generated “by applying the physics of ice flow to ice surface maps and incorporating geophysical ice thickness observations.” There’s an aspect of… More
www.maproomblog.com
January 22, 2026 at 7:16 PM
A new, far more detailed map of the landscape underneath Antarctica’s ice sheet, generated “by applying the physics of ice flow to ice surface maps and incorporating geophysical ice thickness observations.” There’s an aspect of… More
Reposted by The Map Room
The trouble with maps: Greenland’s allure for Trump is based on an illusion ft.trib.al/PlSDaQD
The trouble with maps: Greenland’s allure for Trump is based on an illusion
Who dares tell the US president the Arctic island he covets is not as big as it seems?
ft.trib.al
January 21, 2026 at 6:08 PM
The trouble with maps: Greenland’s allure for Trump is based on an illusion ft.trib.al/PlSDaQD
From May 2025: a blog post from TeleGeography looking back at their annual maps of submarine cables, which they’ve been putting out since at least 2013, and with a different design each year (here’s my… More
Submarine Cable Maps, 2013-2025
From May 2025: a blog post from TeleGeography looking back at their annual maps of submarine cables, which they’ve been putting out since at least 2013, and with a different design each year (here’s my… More
www.maproomblog.com
January 20, 2026 at 2:01 PM
From May 2025: a blog post from TeleGeography looking back at their annual maps of submarine cables, which they’ve been putting out since at least 2013, and with a different design each year (here’s my… More
Gladys West has died at the age of 95. An African-American mathematician who grew up in Jim Crow Virginia, West “devoted herself to solving one of science’s most complex challenges: accurately modeling the shape of… More
Gladys West, 1930-2026
Gladys West has died at the age of 95. An African-American mathematician who grew up in Jim Crow Virginia, West “devoted herself to solving one of science’s most complex challenges: accurately modeling the shape of… More
www.maproomblog.com
January 19, 2026 at 10:58 PM
Gladys West has died at the age of 95. An African-American mathematician who grew up in Jim Crow Virginia, West “devoted herself to solving one of science’s most complex challenges: accurately modeling the shape of… More
Reposted by The Map Room
Dr. Gladys West, the pioneering mathematician whose work laid the foundation for modern GPS technology, has died. She was 95.
Dr. Gladys West, Mathematician Whose Work Made GPS Possible, Dies at 95
ALEXANDRIA, VA — Dr. Gladys West, the pioneering mathematician whose work laid the foundation for modern GPS technology, has died. She passed away
thezebra.org
January 19, 2026 at 6:00 PM
Dr. Gladys West, the pioneering mathematician whose work laid the foundation for modern GPS technology, has died. She was 95.
Reposted by The Map Room
gothamist.com/news/new-yor... right into my veins type news
New York City is making a top secret map of everything under the street
With no centralized, comprehensive map to navigate the underground labyrinth, unexpected subterranean findings have cost the city millions of dollars and years of delays.
gothamist.com
January 19, 2026 at 12:29 AM
gothamist.com/news/new-yor... right into my veins type news