Urbano Monte’s 1587 World Map: A Renaissance Vision Reborn
Our reproduction of Urbano Monte’s 1587 world map brings one of the most ambitious and imaginative creations of Renaissance cartography back to life.
In an age when the known world was still being defined, Monte—a Milanese nobleman, scholar, and member of a circle of geographers and astronomers—set out to map the Earth as no one had before. The result was a 60-sheet planisphere, designed to be assembled into a circle more than ten feet across—the largest known world map of the 16th century.
What truly set Monte apart was his choice of projection. Instead of the familiar rectangular form of Mercator, he used a north-polar azimuthal projection, showing the continents radiating outward from the pole. It was meant to be mounted on a pivot and rotated like a flat globe, centuries before such a display was technologically possible. His vision was as much philosophical as geographic—a way to imagine the unity of the world from a single, centered viewpoint.
Monte’s map is a dazzling blend of art, science, and imagination. He filled the continents with handwritten notes, political emblems, and cultural details. Decorative flourishes—ships, compass roses, sea monsters, and the ornate coats of arms of rulers—dot the oceans. Even where knowledge was uncertain, Monte’s hand traced coastlines and speculative lands with confidence and care.
For centuries, this masterpiece existed only as 60 separate manuscript sheets in the Biblioteca Ambrosiana in Milan. Thanks to modern digital restoration, scholars have reconstructed the map in its full form for the first time in over 400 years, revealing the scope of Monte’s achievement.
Our archival reproduction preserves every fine line and subtle tone of that restoration. Whether displayed as a large statement piece or a smaller study print, it captures the wonder of Monte’s original—an artwork that bridges geography, imagination, and history.
More than four centuries after its creation, Monte’s world map still feels visionary. It reminds us that maps are not just records of where we’ve been, but expressions of how we dream the world might be.