1/2 It's #MapMonsterMonday! This 1689 map of "New France" in eastern Canada and adjacent lands and colonies is the work of Coronelli, du Tralage, Nolin, and Baudrand. It features a couple of sea beasts, a clam shell housing scale bars, and a lake called Ontario.

It’s #MapMonsterMonday! Abraham Ortelius’s 1608 map of Genoa features two sea monsters, a pair of griffins, and a horn-blowing lion with a crown. Impressive compass, too! This map is held in the David Rumsey Collection.

It’s #MapMonsterMonday! Jodocus Hondius’s 1590-1602 map of the world hosts a pair of ferocious beasts and a flying fish. Note the European uncertainty about the poles and Australia at the time. This map is held by a private collector.

It was spectacular. The clouds stayed away, unlike in Austin in 2024. Like diamond rings? Check out the third photo.

It’s #MapMonsterMonday! Abraham Ortelius’s c1608 map of the Iberian Peninsula features a billfish, a dolphin, and a would-be Hercules holding up the cartouche. This map is held by the Folger Shakespeare Library in DC.

It’s #MapMonsterMonday! Gerard Mercator’s 1600-1699 map of South America features a very spiny fish, a flying fish, a Patagonian giant, and some folks potentially exploring Antarctic waters. This map is held by the Bibliothèque nationale de France.

It’s #MapMonsterMonday! John Speed’s 1676 map of Canaan hosts a trio of toothy sea beasts and attempts to locate and depict many Biblical scenes across the region and in an inset of Jerusalem. This map is held by the National Library of Israel.

It’s #MapMonsterMonday! Abraham Ortelius’s 1824 map of ancient Sicily features a sea lion (with a mane), a whale, and a very angry dolphin. Beware. This map is held by Bibliothèque nationale de France.

It’s #MapMonsterMonday! Tommaso Porcacchi’s 1572 map of Madagascar features a sea camel(?) and sea dragon (or serpent) frothing the waters. Cherubim adorn the cartouche. This map is held by the University of Texas at Arlington Libraries.

It’s #MapMonsterMonday! Gerard Mercator’s c1698 map of Persia and Central Asia features this Caspian Sea monster (likely a sturgeon, not the Soviet Ekranoplan). There’s also a face at the bottom of the cartouche. This map is held by a private collector.

It’s #MapMonsterMonday! Jan Baptista Vrients’s 1608 map of Genoa features a pair of sea beasts (one startled by the compass), and a siren with head plumage and braided tails. And how about those griffons? This map is held by a private collector.

It’s #MapMonsterMonday! Tomaso Porcacchi’s 1620 map of Malta features a haggard merman just trying to keep it together, a merdog(?), and a couple of winged sea beasts. Harpies and a lion’s head adorn the cartouche. This map is held by the Gennadius Library in Athens.

It’s #MapMonsterMonday! John Speed’s 1611 map of the Isles features an array of creatures, some representing Scotland, Ireland, and England. I’d like to think that sea dragon represents Wales. Also in attendance are some fish and several cherubim. This map is held by a private collector.

It’s #MapMonsterMonday! Gerard Mercator and Andre Thevet’s 1569 map of western South America features a furry fish with a wolf-like head, what looks like a wolfman on all fours, and some Patagonian giants. This map is held by the Library of Congress.

It’s #MapMonsterMonday! Abraham Ortelius’s 1606 map of Morocco, with a Congo inset, features a great cetacean bursting from the water. The cartouche features sphinxes, seraphim, cherubim, and lions. Full house! This image is from the Digital Bodleian at Oxford University.

It’s #MapMonsterMonday! Jodocus Hondius’s 1606 map of Cyprus (and other islands) features a rather toothy fish with a swirling tail and an unhappy green man (or satyr, maybe) and a slightly bemused character adorn the scales. This map is held by Bibliothèque nationale de France.

It’s #MapMonsterMonday! Gerard Mercator’s c1590 map of Iceland features a spouting behemoth, and check out that volcano, also spouting. This map is held by the National Library of Israel.

It’s #MapMonsterMonday! Willem and Joanne Blaeu’s 1645 map of the Low Countries and part of Germany features some fearsome beasts waging their struggles against encroaching ships. Oh, and some seals beating a hasty retreat. This map is held by the University of California.

It’s #MapMonsterMonday! André Thevet’s 1586 map of Villegagnon Island in Guanabara Bay features a mysterious marine creature, perhaps a dolphin. Also mysterious is the compass. Sea star? Cosmic horror? This map is held by Bibliothèque nationale de France.

1/3 It’s #MapMonsterMonday! Gerard Mercator’s 1569 (reprinted here 1864) sheet five of his map of the world hosts many incredible creatures that defy description. This map is held by a the University of Pittsburgh.

It’s #MapMonsterMonday! Willem Blaeu’s c1640 map of Türkiye features a couple of sea beasts, one making an approach toward the Bosporus and another plying the waters between Cyprus and the Levantine mainland. This map is held by a private collector.

It’s #MapMonsterMonday! Abraham Ortelius’s 1598 map of Morocco features a feisty sea beast and a heavily adorned cartouche with cherubim, seraphim, and a pair of sphinxes, as well as three lion heads. This map is held by a private collector.

1/3 It’s #MapMonsterMonday! I’ve posted this one a couple of times, but it’s the pride of my collection and it seems like a good time roll it out again. This is Michael Ramus’s 1969, “Myths, Maps, and Men. Merrill Lynch Salutes the Year of the Moon.”

It’s #MapMonsterMonday! Abraham Ortelius’s 1572 map of the Western Hemisphere hosts a dolphinesque creature, but the real action is on the cartouche. It hosts a pair of winged lions and none other than Lord Catfish, himself. This map is held by a private collector.

It’s #MapMonsterMonday! Sebastian Münster’s 1600 map of Italy hosts a couple of beasts: a sea dragon and possibly a turtle, both shocked that Monday is at hand. This map is held by Columbia University.

It’s #MapMonsterMonday! Abraham Ortelius’s 1587 map of Portugal hosts what appears to be a shaggy sea dog plotting its revenge after bath day. Both cartouches have lions, though these have more of a simian look. This map is held by a private collector.

It’s #MapMonsterMonday! Johannes Blaeu’s 1667 map of Terra di Lavoro features sea monsters who can’t believe it’s Monday. However, the scale bar mermaids are pointing out how the Earth and the heavens work. This map is held by the British Library.

It’s #MapMonsterMonday! Gerard de Jode’s 1593 map of northern Europe features a trio of fanciful sea monsters that appear to be having a grand time frolicking among the ships. This map is held by a private collector.

1/2 It’s #MapMonsterMonday! Jodocus Hondius and Petrus Kaerius’s 1606 map of Spain and Portugal features a couple of billfish and two others, none of whom can believe it’s Monday already. This map is held by a private collector.

1/2 It’s #MapMonsterMonday! John Speed and Jodocus Hondius’s c1610-16 map of Lancashire features a mermaid gazing in her mirror while two sea beasts admire. Also of note is Pendle Hill, home of alleged witches and focus of the 1612 Pendle Witch Trials.