Book of curiosities

Copperplates of the Americas

This Treasure is paired with: Copperplates of the Americas (New worlds)

‘Marvellous watermelons’ and trees bearing humans on legendary islands in the Indian Ocean are curiosities presented here from the edges of the known world. This manuscript also contains unique maps including these of the Tigris and Oxus rivers. It is a 12th- or 13th-century copy of an anonymous work compiled in Egypt in the 11th century. Until it came to the Bodleian in 2002, the importance of this scientific, astronomical and cartographic text was unrecognized.

Further resources

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This Treasure isn’t currently on display in the Weston Library.