Saw this on a map

In the strange and wonderful world of symbolism on maps one of the strangest concepts has to be the all seeing eye of God. A floating and detached eye with rays of light radiating out the eye symbolizes God's omnipotence, as see on this map of Bavaria, circa 1700. #maps @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

After Julius Caesar was killed in 44BCE the assassins ran through Rome holding a spear with a cap worn by freed slaves on the end to show the city was free of the of the tyrant. The spear and cap appear on maps symbolising freedom and liberty, from Britain in 1733 and 1802 and France in 1791 #maps

Banish those stains! An advert from the back of a 1969 plan of the Germany town of Ahrensburg published by Falk-Verlag. Wenn quicky zaubert... (When Quicky works his magic, the stain devil disappears completely within hours) #maps @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

Simple and stylish covers from 1964 Ordnance Survey maps of Ancient Britain. Dun Carloway broch on the Isle of Lewis on the northern sheet, a Stonehenge trilithon the southern. Then the sites on the maps themselves, Stonehenge in a crowded part of Wiltshire #maps #ordnancesurvey @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

Outdoor living celebrated in this 1997 school atlas of the Kyiv Oblast. On the cover the backpack is the shape of the oblast while inside there are pages on Ukrainian flora and fauna, orienteering and weather. All intended to encourage outdoor living, the benefits of which are shown at end #ukraine

Open countryside and the village of Hampstead north of Regents Park in this map of London by John Outhett, published in 1854. Numbers along the top (32 to 44) show the difference in seconds of time west from Greenwich, shown 'On the request of several scientific gentleman' #maps @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

In this cartouche from a Dutch atlas, 1700, winged spirits called Putti represent muses and Greek Gods. Clockwise top right; Geography, Ceres the Goddess of agriculture, Poseidon, HIstory, Hermes carrying a caduceus, Euterpe muse of song and liberty with a liberty cap. #maps @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

OTD 1791 the city being built by the Potomac was official named after George Washington, the first President of the United States. 1st image an inset from a French map of North America, 1800. 2nd a road map of the area, circa 1960. #maps #washington @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

OTD 1666 the Great Fire of London started in Pudding Lane. Burning for 3 days, the fire destroyed much of the city. Here's a picture of the fire from a later map by Wenceslaus Hollar and a map by the diarist John Evelyn showing his ideas for redevelopment @bodleian.ox.ac.uk #fire #maps #london

Lake Titicaca, with it's 'Temple of the Sun all covered with Gold', from a large (over two and a half by one and a half metres) map of South America, 1807. Read more about the map in a Bodleian blog post here blogs.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/maps/2026/08... @bodleian.ox.ac.uk #cartography

John Speed, in a World map printed in 1627, included a diagram explaining how a solar eclipse worked. As this recent Bodleian map blog shows it wasn't till the eighteenth century with the work of Edmund Halley that eclipses could be predicted blogs.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/maps/2026/07... #Eclipse

Two wonderful covers from Swiss Federal Railways maps, 1935. The Gotthard (9.3 miles, the longest tunnel in the World when opened in 1882) and the Simplon (which is 2 single track tunnels both over 11 miles long) tunnels feature on the maps, cutting through the Alps. @bodleian.ox.ac.uk #railways

OTD 1914 Britain declared war on Germany after Germany had invaded Belgium. Two maps to show different views. Patriotic belief that the war would be over soon is reflected in the cartoon map 'Kill that Eagle'. Trench warfare would soon end that hope. No-mans land map, 1916. @bodleian.ox.ac.uk #WWI

On these days, July 1588, the Spanish Armada sailed through the English Channel, harassed along the way by the English navy. These images come from John Speed's map of circa 1627 showing 'the invasions of England and Ireland with all their civil wars since the conquest'. @bodleian.ox.ac.uk #armada

Italian cool in this early 1960s map of the Tuscan city of Livorno.

OTD 1748 a solar eclipse cast a shadow over parts of the Earth, and the path of the eclipse was mapped by George Smith, esq. The map also shows the Sun from various locations showing the degrees of shadow. John Speed, in a 1641 World map, shows us how an eclipse works #eclipses @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

As pretty a compass rose as can be imagined on this plan of the Southery estate in Norfolk, belonging to 'Edmd. Mapes Esq.', map surveyed and drawn in 1772. Also list and index of contents (lots of 'Fen ground') and a small part of the River Ouse. @bodleian.ox.ac.uk #Norfolk #maps

In 1820 John Cary published a county geological atlas by William Smith, famous for his ground-breaking geological map of England and Wales, 1815. Not every county is covered but those that are beautifully represented. Here's Gloucestershire and a small part of north Oxfordshire @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

Cartographic connections with Europe from this triangulation map of Europe, 1885. From the Shetland Islands to Tunis via Sicily all linked up with triangles, with standardized map plotting the aim. Total coincidence this posted on the 10th anniversary of the Brexit vote @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

Good advice on life as well as on the road, from a Tasmanian tourist map, circa 2025

OTD 1667 Dutch ships sailed up the River Medway capturing and burning British naval ships. This map was part of a report made by one famous diarist, John Evelyn, to another, Samuel Pepys, who was a naval administrator at the time, more here blogs.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/maps/2019/02... @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

OTD 1731 fire swept through the Dorset town of Blandford Forum. Starting at 2pm in a candle makers house (A on map) the fire soon spread and by 11pm had caused damage to the church (B), the fire engines having already been burnt in the blaze. Full map, extract and text shown @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

It's World Bicycle Day today, here are two Ordnance Survey map covers from between the wars by OS in-house artist Ellis Martin (more examples of his work below). More free time after WWI led to an increase in walking and cycling maps, often with covers as attractive as these @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

Triangulation is a way of working out distances measuring angles of a triangle, from two known points of distance you can then measure the third, and so on. When on maps it also creates lovely patterns, as on this map of the States from 1940, Florida and across Chesapeake Bay @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

In the week of the Hajj, the holy pilgrimage to Mecca here's a Qibla compass map, from 1571. In the circle surrounding the Kaaba are 32 separate directions to help find the direction to pray towards Mecca. More on our amazing Islamic maps here storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/0755... @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

Pyramids a plenty on this map from a series covering Egypt, 1906. Giza and Saqqara shown at a time before Cairo had encroached too near their locations. The pyramids also appeared in a recent post below from the late 1500s @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

Flying 1950s style. Images of passenger flights from a B.O.A.C. map of Britain and the Commonwealth, c1951. 4 days to Sydney with multiple stop-overs doesn't sound like fun and people look wrapped up so probably not that warm either. Still, looks like a gin and tonic will help @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

The seasons represented around a World map in Atlas Maritimus, or the Sea-Atlas, being a book of maritime charts... by 'John Seller, Hydrographer to the King' (Charles II), printed 1675 and 'sold at his shop at the Hermitage in Wapping'. Includes the zodiac signs for each season @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

A beautiful map of the World showing the 12 classical compass winds from a manuscript atlas by Battista Agnese c1553. Note Baja California joined to the mainland, and Magellan's route around the World. This beautifully illustrated atlas also has a zodiac at the beginning @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

Fishing Guinea-style on this map of the Atlantic around St. Helena, c1700. Fire, B, comes out of the holes, A, and the fire from the torches, C, attract the fish which are then speared, D, or caught in the net, E. The map also shows fishing boats from Brazil and fish-tailed putti @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

Lovely, if not exactly accurate, view of the Pyramids and Sphinx set in a very green Cairo, from the celebrated atlas Civitates Orbis Terrarum, published between 1572 and 1617 by Georg Braun and Franz Hogenberg. This famous atlas has maps of all the major towns and cities @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

Late in the evening OTD 1912 RMS Titanic hits one of the icebergs shown on this June 1912 chart of the North Atlantic. The Bodleian holds the Marconi archive and before the ship sank telegrams were sent both from the ship and to others in the area like this one, calling for help. @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

OTD 1912 RMS Titanic is midway on it's journey to New York. This comprehensive 1914 map by George Philip & Son shows shipping routes across the Atlantic, with the Titanic on one of the red lines south of Newfoundland. @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

OTD 1912 RMS Titanic leaves berth 44, White Star Dock Southampton after taking on passengers, most of whom arrive at the Ocean Terminal train station. Ordnance Survey map from 1919, plan of Southampton Docks 1962. On route hundreds of nautical miles away the icebergs lie in wait @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

OTD 1727 this French map was made showing British Naval ships off Gibraltar to help end a siege started by the Spanish in February. he map shows English ships under Vice Admiral Wager and the bombardment of Spanish forces in what is know called the Thirteenth siege of Gibraltar @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

OTD 1912 RMS Titanic leaves the Thompson Gravity Dock in Belfast to sail to Southampton, at the same time icebergs were mapped in the Atlantic. Dock plan from 1922 Ordnance Survey map, Icebergs from Atlantic Pilot map May 1912, warnings from 1864 map. More Titanic posts to follow @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

A gloriously colourful frontispiece from this English printing, 1606 of Theatrum Orbis Terrarum, 'set forth by that excellent geographer Abraham Ortelius'. The 4 known continents shown, with Europe at top. The riot of colour continues on the next page with the crest of King James @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

OTD 1834, Easter Sunday, Anne Lister of Gentleman Jack fame 'took sacrament here to seal her union with Ann Walker'. Here being Holy Trinity Church, York, seen on a 1748 map and Ordnance Survey maps from 1852, with roof off, and in pink from 1891 @annelistersociety.bsky.social @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

According to the venerable Bede 18th March was the 1st day of Creation. In sequence Adam was created on the 23rd. Here's Eden from Edward Quin's historical atlas of 1830, clouds part to reveal more of the World as we move through historical time, finishing with the peace of 1828 @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

Lovely representations of lighthouses in French nautical charts of Algeria and the north African coast from maps from the 180s and 1870s. The yellow shows the area the light is directed and the figures with the main lights giving distance of observed light out to sea @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

Did you know that your discarded orange peel takes longer to break down then your sweaty woollen walking socks? Information on the back of a beautiful trekking map of the Huayhuash cordillera in Peru, 2004. Also includes detailed instructions on building a campfire toilet @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

Today is World Book Day. Surveyor and cartographer Mark Pierce has included himself in his famous map of Laxton, 1635, writing and reading the book he has made to go with his map. Read more and see this remarkable map here storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/32b7... @bodleian.ox.ac.uk @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

Perfect cartographic recycling! Paper supply shortages towards the end of World War II led to resourceful British Army mapmakers printing a map in a series for the invasion of Germany on the back of a captured German map made 4 years before for the planned invasion of Britain @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

Dark and atmospheric covers for Romanian mountain guides, late 1940s and early 1950s. Each guide has a map, and the title means 'Our mountains'. Guides for the Bucegi, Retezat and Piatra Craiului mountains. Happy climbing... @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

A fiery Sun and icy Moon from 'Atlas Minor' by Nicolaus Visscher, printed in Amsterdam circa 1650. These both appear on a page showing the constellations of the zodiac, where there's also a pictorial representation of a solar eclipse. @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

Captain Greenville Collins, 'Hydrographer in Ordinary to the Kings and Queens most excellent Majasties' produced a coasting pilot in 1693 which included cartouches with Viking ships, a dedication to Samuel Pepys and a wonderful frontispiece with water nymphs, gods and Britannia @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

OTD 1740 this map was printed, possibly on one of the printing presses shown on the map, to celebrate a 'Frost Fayre' on the Thames, which had been frozen all winter. The ice was thick enough for games such as nine pins to be played or an ox to be roasted. Cold indeed. @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

In Speed's atlas, 1611, is this image, with text 'But success of warr altering Maud the Emperese to save her owne life adventured to throwe the host her enimie, layde in a coffin fayned to be dead, and soe was carryed in a horse litter from Winchester'. Maud's escape was in 1141 @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

'Birdstrikes can ruin your whole day and most of your aircraft'. Probably not much fun for the bird either. These warnings from Falkland Island maps made during and after the 1982 war show how the war and post-war reconstruction had to coexist with the animal life on the islands @bodleian.ox.ac.uk

It's Penguin Appreciation day today, here's one of the earliest we can find on a map, from John Senex's 'South America corrected from the observations comunicated to the Royal Society’s of London & Paris', 1710. More on the map here blogs.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/maps/2019/02... @bodleian.ox.ac.uk