Ptolemy edition of 1513
When Ptolemy’s Geography was translated into Latin, it had a powerful impact on Renaissance cartographers.
Claudius Ptolemaeus. Geographie opus novissima. Strassburg, Johann Schott, 1513. Folger call number G87.P8 L3 1513 Cage.
One of the most important classical texts in the Renaissance was the Geography of the Greek philosopher Claudius Ptolemaeus, commonly known as Ptolemy, which dates from about AD 150. When the Geography was translated into Latin in the 15th century (the first printed edition appeared in 1477), it had a powerful impact on cartographers. In the Geography, Ptolemy not only states that the earth is spherical but also demonstrates the use of a coordinate system based on that shape, and proposes three methods, or projections, for depicting the spherical earth on a flat surface.