The bizarre details hidden in a 16th-century map of Iceland

Who knew Iceland could be so dangerous? Abraham Ortelius’ redrawing of Iceland in 1585 forever changed how Europe viewed this distant island in the Atlantic. By using local sources, Ortelius was able to draw accurate coastlines and fill his new map with fascinating and terrifying information, making this one of the most beautiful and striking maps of Iceland ever printed. Learn about the monstrous sea creatures inhabiting Iceland's waters, the gateway to hell, how foxes hunted bird eggs, and the spring of beer you can still visit today. High-resolution map & description: https://hdl.handle.net/10037.2/603 Further reading: https://mapmyths.com/blog/islandia/ Olaus Magnus and Carta Marina:    • The map of man-eating monsters   Ortelius' legend of the sea creatures (translated from the French 1590 version) A. This is a fish called Nahval. If anyone eats this fish, they die immediately. It has a tooth on its front, seven cubits long. Some have sold it for a unicorn horn, and it is good against poison. This fish is forty ells long. B. Roider. It is one hundred and thirty ells long, it has no teeth, its flesh is good to eat, and its fat is good against several diseases. C. Burhvalur, it has a head bigger than its whole body It has several teeth, from which darts are made; it is sixty cubits long. D. Hyena, or sea pig. Of this monster, see Olaus, book 21. E. Ziphius. a very horrible sea monster. F. British whale, thirty ells long. It has no teeth; its tongue is seven ells long. G. Horshvalur, or marine horse. It is maned and very damaging to fishermen. H. It is a whale larger than all the others, which is rarely seen and looks more like an island than a fish. She cannot pursue small fish, hindered by her size; but she catches them with the natural agility she possesses for sustenance. I. Skautuhvalur. It is spotted and striped, but larger in comparison, for it is no less than the aforementioned, and its wings can overpower the largest ships. K. Seenaut, or sea oxen, claw-colored: they sometimes come out of the sea and graze on its shores. They have a skin shaped like a pouch that hangs from their muzzle, with which they take their food from the water, and being fed, they join the other oxen in the meadows. L. Steipe reidu. Whales are very friendly to humans; for they fight against each other in favour of the fishermen. It is forbidden to kill or wound them. They are a hundred cubits long. M. Staukul, in German Springval. It was seen for a whole day standing on its tail: he has his name in common with jumping; it is a great enemy of small boats, and a predator of human flesh. N. Rostunger, resembling a seal, walks on four feet along the seabed; its skin is very hard to pierce. To sleep, it hangs from the teeth of some rock and remains thus asleep for twelve hours. It is fourteen ells long and has teeth one ell long. O. Ambergris is the sperm of whales, or common amber. P. Pieces of wood and trees uprooted by the violence of the winds, which are tossed here and there by the storms, wash up here. Q. Large pieces of ice, which are brought here from the frozen sea, some are about forty cubits long, and on these polar bears appear to catch fish. 0:00 Abraham Ortelius and Islandia 0:42 A catalogue of sea monsters 3:43 The land of ice and fire: Hekla 4:39 Glaciers and other details of Iceland 6:12 Ortelius’ sources and Bishop Gudbrandur Thorláksson 7:20 Outro