Map of the World 1154

Muhammad al-Idrisi (1099–1165 or 1166) was born in the north African town of Ceuta but spent much of his early life traveling around the known world, going as far as York in England, Hungary and Anatolia. He settled on the island of Sicily and began working for the Norman King Roger II. In 1154 he created for him the Tabula Rogeriana, which offers a description of the world and over 70 maps of various places. The centre-piece of this book is his world map, which depicts Europe, Asia and the northern part of Africa (the southern part of the world is at the top of the map). Al-Idrisi states that it shows “the seven climatic regions, with their respective countries and districts, coasts and lands, gulfs and seas, watercourses and river mouths.” What a fascinating document! I would love to see it in real life. I think this further demonstrates the close relationship between Sicily and northern Africa, between the Christians and the Muslims of this period.