Maps

The northern subtropical jet stream flows in Cameron Beccario's Earth.

Watch How the Wind Moves Around the Earth—It's Hypnotic

This mesmerizing tool helps visualize the winds all over the globe and is known simply as “Earth"

Photo courtesy of David Rumsey Map Collection. Interactive by Esri. Text by Natasha Geiling.

When the Lincoln Memorial Was Underwater

James Keily’s 1851 map of Washington shows a considerably smaller district, before the Potomac River was filled in to make way for monuments

Photo courtesy of the David Rumsey Map Collection; Interactive by Esri; Text by Natasha Geiling.

Before There Could Be a Los Angeles, There Had to be Water

California’s first state engineer, along with a team of surveyors, created this hand drawn map in 1880 to explore Los Angeles’ water resources

Photo courtesy of the David Rumsey Map Collection; Interactive by Esri; Text by Natasha Geiling.

What Did San Francisco Look Like in the Mid-1800s?

A look at a sailing chart of San Francisco and its bay, made in 1859 by the fledgling US Coast Survey

Interactive map courtesy of Esri. Text by Natasha Geiling.

What Did Chicago Look Like Before the Great Fire?

This 1868 pocket map of Chicago shows the city in full-blown expansion, a mere 3 years before the infamous blaze

The 13th century Tripitaka Koreana features 81,258 wooden blocks thought to be the world's most complete collection of Buddhist texts.

Preserving the World’s Most Important Artifacts

The Memory of World Register lists over 800 historic manuscripts, maps, films and more to help raise funds for preservation

"Getting to the Pacific by ship, without having to go over land, was the biggest challenge of that period," says Helen Nadar. "[Magellan's] the one that solved it" (above, a color engraving).

The Man Who Sailed the World

Ferdinand Magellan's global journey gave him fame, but took his life

In Lisbon's Rossio Square, Pistolesi's computer-aided stitching together of 12 distinct images yields one, he says, that is "like a painting."

Circling Squares

A 360-degree perspective on some of Europe's most alluring public spaces

Hanging scroll

For These Precious Scrolls, Aged Glue and 'Damage Maps'

Not to mention patience, as 40 of them go from the Freer Gallery to six workshops in Japan to undergo a complete overhaul

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