This exhibition provides an insight into the intriguing dialogue between the Bible and cartography. Since the Middle Ages, numerous attempts have been made at mapping biblical places. In the 16th century, because of the literal reading of the Bible by Protestants, Geographia Sacra or ‘holy geography’ developed into a vivid field of study. The rapidly developing geographic and cartographic knowledge of the time, provided increasingly accurate basemaps. The printing presses were running at full speed and maps found their way to Bible commentaries, atlases and, not least, for Bibles themselves.
Thanks to this exhibition, we are able to show maps of the Bijbels Museum, which were recently donated to Special Collections of the University Library . In addition, a number of recent acquisitions are on display. In the displays just behind you, a selection of Bibles is exposed from Vrije Universiteits' collection 'Manuscripts and early printed books’. This exhibition was produced by Reinout Klaarenbeek, curator Maps and Atlases.