The Shape of Water: Historical Maps and the Mapping of the Amazon Basin

Keywords: History of cartography, mapping of the Amazon, river maps, scientific expeditions, mobility of knowledge
Session Type: Virtual Paper Abstract
Day: Saturday
Session Start / End Time: 2/26/2022 11:20 AM (Eastern Time (US & Canada)) - 2/26/2022 12:40 PM (Eastern Time (US & Canada))
Room: Virtual 18

Abstract

Mapping the Amazon River was a challenge for explorers, surveyors and cartographers in the past since information on maps depended heavily on accounts by people who directly traveled along the main rivers and their tributaries by following their courses from the source to the mouth and vice-versa. The history of cartography presents many examples of maps that were either copies, corrections and updates from previous works or the result of months- or yearslong fieldwork in remote and inaccessible areas during which the mapmakers had to cope with the physical environment of the Tropics and hostile Native populations. With their cold appearance in the form of squares or rectangles, the published maps do not tell the stories of challenges and sacrifices behind their production. The aim of this paper is to analyze historical maps that represent particular rivers rather than entire watershed in order to discuss both the meaning and impact of map formats and sizes and the transcription process from direct observation to paper. Examples in the discussion include the Roosevelt-Rondon Scientific Expedition (1913-1914) in search for the mouth of the River of Doubt, the Hamilton Rice Expeditions (between 1907 and 1925) and printed and manuscript maps made and/or used by steamboat companies and riverboat captains in the early twentieth century. I argue that a focus on the mapping process and the movements and flows during production and use provide further insights into the understanding of cartographic histories and the limitations of conventional map shape.