Drawing the Lines

By MARYANN BIRD/London Monday, Nov. 19, 2001
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THE BRITISH LIBRARY

The Garden of Eden appears on a 17th century map of the Middle East, in present-day Iraq. Nearby is the Tower of Babel

Maps are more than lines on paper. Like letters or diaries, they tell human stories. They reflect the views of their makers, or their intended users, about what is important, and they reveal just as much by what they exclude as what they include.

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