/r/oldmaps

Photograph via snooOG

Beautiful and illuminating maps from around the world, from the oldest examples known to those created around 1950.

Welcome!

We're interested in sharing interesting, beautiful or informative examples of the cartographer's trade, from their emergence in the ancient Near East up to a somewhat arbitrary end-date of 1950 A.D.

We'll happily accept historical maps! If you're posting a map, please provide a description and date in the title.


Related Subreddits

r/Maps - If you're interested in maps and cartography generally (or modern maps specifically).

r/MapPorn - For gorgeous wallpaper-size maps of all descriptions.

r/Geography - If you're curious about the geography that informed historic mapmapkers.

r/ArtHistory - For background on the artistic styles that influenced mapmakers through history.

r/History and r/MedievalHistory - For historical background.

r/MapMaking - If you're getting the feeling you'd like to try your hand at cartography.

r/Vexillology - If you're interested in more ways people symbolically stake out territory. For everything you need to know about flags.

r/ImaginaryMaps - For maps from fictional stories, books, films, television programs, video games, and comics.

r/WorldBuilding - For sharing your worlds and discussing the many aspects of creating new universes.

r/OldNews - For news that isn't new. News from history, news from the past.

r/Gis - For the technical side of cartography and geography.

r/PaperTowns - For well-crafted pictorial maps, detailed panoramic cityscapes, broad aerial vistas, intricate bird's-eye views and even full 3D reconstructions.


We were trending on 12/15/15!

/r/oldmaps

44,406 Subscribers

38

1778 Map of Paris

3 Comments
2024/07/26
15:12 UTC

31

World Map (from 'The Nuremberg Chronicle'). Michael Wolgemut (1434/1437–1519).

3 Comments
2024/07/22
14:38 UTC

58

A gorgeous map from 1635 of the province of Zeeland, the Netherlands

4 Comments
2024/07/21
09:55 UTC

43

The German Language in Bohemia (1900 census), published in 1904 [8265 x 6814]

0 Comments
2024/07/09
18:12 UTC

54

The Mitchell Map from 1755 - this is the most comprehensive map of eastern North America made during the colonial era [9749 x 6759]

1 Comment
2024/07/06
07:31 UTC

35

John Gibson’s “An Accurate Map of the British Empire in Nth. America as settled by the Preliminaries in 1762.”

Things were about to change. Happy July 4th!

0 Comments
2024/07/04
15:32 UTC

55

1729 Ottoman Map of the Mediterranean

1 Comment
2024/06/14
16:58 UTC

43

Hanoi 1875

1 Comment
2024/06/13
20:23 UTC

38

1888 Map of the Mekong Delta

1 Comment
2024/06/12
15:38 UTC

17

Map of Europe From,''Augustus Mitchell's Primary Geography'', published in 1845.

1 Comment
2024/06/11
20:44 UTC

33

1859 map of Bolivia, from the first proper survey of the republic - by Juan Ondarza [6779 x 8506]

2 Comments
2024/06/10
06:25 UTC

20

Map of the levant - 1930s

Not dated, probably, anywhere between 1923 and 1946? Syria, Lebanon under French mandate Irak, Israel/Palestine under English

1 Comment
2024/06/02
14:21 UTC

27

1876 railway map of Pennsylvania - by Joseph A. Caldwell [9929 x 6390]

2 Comments
2024/05/31
08:10 UTC

18

1909 Ottoman map of Syria and Beirut [4060 x 9805]

0 Comments
2024/05/27
06:08 UTC

25

Globe from the 1730s - by John Senex

3 Comments
2024/05/22
23:04 UTC

20

Al-Idrisi’s Medieval World Map from 1154, produced in 1800 [3050 x 3157]

2 Comments
2024/05/18
23:32 UTC

26

1886 map of the world, showing the extent of the British Empire [8149 x 7017]

2 Comments
2024/05/18
07:21 UTC

16

1579 map of the Americas - by Abraham Ortelius [5885 x 4267]

2 Comments
2024/05/17
22:38 UTC

19

There's a service in Sweden which offers high quality information about properties and land mainly for free, but also historical information. That includes historical maps. Here's one from 1860, anyone want to guess where? Hint: Eurovision

6 Comments
2024/05/15
08:58 UTC

21

1875 map of the United States & Canada [7706 x 5986]

1 Comment
2024/05/13
04:04 UTC

11

Sekisui Nagakubo - True map and description of geography of all the countries on the globe, revised in Kaei period (c1850)[6808 x 4880]

1 Comment
2024/05/09
21:31 UTC

24

1940 map of Europe [9914 x 6954]

1 Comment
2024/05/07
20:55 UTC

33

1849 map of Scotland [6598 x 8922]

1 Comment
2024/04/29
04:17 UTC

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