First edition in English, limited to 1,000 copies. This is a presentation copy of Cortesao's authoritative work, inscribed by him to his fellow-historian and great collector Boies Penrose; a charming letter from Cortesao to Penrose is also included.

First edition in English, limited to 1,000 copies. This is a presentation copy of Cortesao's authoritative work, inscribed by him to his fellow-historian and great collector Boies Penrose; a charming letter from Cortesao to Penrose is also included.
This study of cartographic history, by one of the pre-eminent historians of Portuguese exploration and map making, deals with developments until the fifteenth century. The first volume has a wider scope than the title suggests, including discussion on early Western cartography and navigational science until the Renaissance as a frame of reference for Portuguese efforts. The second and larger volume focuses in detail on the history of Portuguese navigation, discussing the early Atlantic voyages and the works of Portuguese map makers in the fifteenth century. A third volume, though planned, was never completed.