Back to Results
Cover image of Erikson, Eskimos, and Columbus
Cover image of Erikson, Eskimos, and Columbus
Share this Title:

Erikson, Eskimos, and Columbus

Medieval European Knowledge of America

James Robert Enterline

Publication Date
Binding Type

How did medieval Europeans have such specific geographic knowledge of North America, a land even their most daring adventurers had not yet discovered? In Erikson, Eskimos, and Columbus, James Robert Enterline presents new evidence that traces this knowledge to the cartographic skills of indigenous people of the high Arctic, who, he contends, provided the basis for medieval maps of large parts of North America. Drawing on an exhaustive chronological survey of pre-Columbian maps, including the controversial Yale Vinland Map, this book boldly challenges conventional accounts of Europe's discovery...

How did medieval Europeans have such specific geographic knowledge of North America, a land even their most daring adventurers had not yet discovered? In Erikson, Eskimos, and Columbus, James Robert Enterline presents new evidence that traces this knowledge to the cartographic skills of indigenous people of the high Arctic, who, he contends, provided the basis for medieval maps of large parts of North America. Drawing on an exhaustive chronological survey of pre-Columbian maps, including the controversial Yale Vinland Map, this book boldly challenges conventional accounts of Europe's discovery of the New World.

Reviews

Reviews

Enterline presents a plausible scenario for the transmission of Thule Eskimo and Greenland Norse geographic knowledge into the worldview of late medieval cartographers. His hypothesis will be controversial and it will stimulate scholarly debate for many years to come. It is almost certainly too extreme in its claims but it also probably contains a significant core of truth. The Johns Hopkins University Press is to be congratulated for taking a speculative chance on a speculative book.

This rather controversial book takes an unusual approach to the question of the sources of geographical information on which pre-Columbian European maps of America were based... While the book is for believers, its arguments are interesting and well-presented, making it an appropriate addition to most collections.

See All Reviews
About

Book Details

Publication Date
Status
Available
Trim Size
7
x
10
Pages
368
ISBN
9780801878954
Illustration Description
62 halftones, 17 line drawings
Table of Contents

List of Illustrations
Directory to the Chronological Survey
Preface and Acknowledgments
Front Map
Chapter 1. Introduction
Part I: Outstanding Misunderstandings
Chapter 2. Claudius Clavus
Chapter 3. The

List of Illustrations
Directory to the Chronological Survey
Preface and Acknowledgments
Front Map
Chapter 1. Introduction
Part I: Outstanding Misunderstandings
Chapter 2. Claudius Clavus
Chapter 3. The Inventio Fortunatae and Martin Behaim
Chapter 4. The Yale Vinland Map
Part II: The Chronological Survey
Chapter 5. Introduction to the Chronological Survey
A. Classical Norse Greenland
Chapter 6. Early Scandinavian Geography
Chapter 7. Communication Links with Greenland
Chapter 8. The Unseen Bridge
B. Uncovering an America
Chapter 9. Late Greenland-Based Exploration
Chapter 10. Foundations of European Misunderstandings
Chapter 11. News Penetrates the Establishment
Chapter 12. Europe's Westward Awakening
Chapter 13. Mastery of the Atlantic
C. Old Images in New Maps
Chapter 14. A New Continent Emerges
Chapter 15. An Old Continent Emerges
Chapter 16. The Misunderstandings Are Resolved
Chapter 17. Conclusion
Appendix: The Vinland Map's Ink
Notes
Selected Bibliography
Facsimile Atlases and Reproductions
Index

Author Bio
Featured Contributor

James Robert Enterline

James Robert Enterline is a mathematician and computer consultant who is well known for his work in the history of cartography. He is the author of Viking America.