The oil and gas conglomerate and Fifa, the world governing body, sign major sponsorship agreement
The first woodblock printed map of the Arabian Peninsula, which is on display at the ongoing 39th Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF), is drawing curious crowds.
Oliver Pingel, the owner of French publishing house that exhibited the map, told Khaleej Times that it is the first woodblock printed depiction of the region, in spectacular contemporary hand colour. The map was used by a lot of ancient travellers and explorers, he pointed out.
The map is from the rare 1482 Ulm edition of Ptolemy’s Geographia, the first atlas printed north of the Alps and the first to contain illustrated woodcut maps. It contains the traditional 27 Ptolemaic maps, of which this is one, and there are five additional modern maps in it of Italy, Spain, France, Scandinavia, and the Holy Land. The Arabian Peninsula map is the most-sought-after of all 15th century maps of the region.
The Ulm Ptolemy was innovative as it was intended to be coloured, with instructions from the publisher to embellish the woodcut print. The seas are coloured in rich blue, using expensive and scarce lapis lazuli as the colouring agent.
A border of latitude and longitude lines frame the map, an innovation in cartography traceable to Ptolemy.
afkarali@khaleejtimes.com
The oil and gas conglomerate and Fifa, the world governing body, sign major sponsorship agreement
Toomaj Salehi risks being hanged after the conviction on the Shariah charge of "corruption on Earth" by a Revolutionary Court
Aid groups warn any invasion would add to already-catastrophic conditions for Gaza's 2.4 million people
The American they will face Australia and Serbia on July 15 and July 17 as part of their preparation for the Paris Olympic Games
The leaders emphasise that the deal to release the hostages would bring an immediate and prolonged ceasefire in Gaza
Dubai-based Sumit Augustine has had a philosophical approach towards spending
The regional upswing also defies oil production cutbacks
It's a treatise that would determine the course of your life, not just academically, but as a person too