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The five curiosities about the world's oldest globe

The 'Behaim globe', built in 1492 and considered the first globe to have survived to the present day, may soon be declared a UNESCO World Documentary Heritage.

The UNESCO Executive Council met in Paris from 10 to 24 May 2023 to discuss, among other things, new additions to the UNESCO International Memory of the World Register. Its official name is Erdapfel (literally Earth Apple), and it was made of laminated linen in two halves, reinforced with wood and covered with a map painted by Georg Glockendon.

The absence of the American continent is obvious, the Japanese islands are depicted too large, and there is a huge ocean between Europe and Asia.

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The five curiosities about the world's oldest globe
The 'Behaim globe', built in 1492 and considered the first globe to have survived to the present day, may soon be declared a UNESCO World Documentary Heritage site.
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The five curiosites about the world's oldest globe
The UNESCO Executive Council is meeting in Paris from 10 to 24 May 2023 to discuss, among other things, new additions to the UNESCO International Memory of the World Register. Its official name is Erdapfel (literally 'earth apple'), and it was made of laminated linen in two halves, reinforced with wood and covered with a map painted by Georg Glockendon.
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The five curiosities about the world's oldest globe
The American continent was not represented as the navigator Christopher Columbus, after the discovery of America, did not return to Spain until March 1493. The globe represents a very wide Eurasian continent and a totally empty ocean with no islands between Europe and Asia. Note, however, the inclusion of the mythical island of San Brandano. In contrast, Japan and the Asian islands are disproportionately large.
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The five curiosities about the world's oldest globe
Very curious is the presence of the island of San Brandano, a story that may not be known to everyone. In fact, it is said to be a legendary fish-island located to the west of Africa. The name comes from the Irish monk who, according to stories, landed there during his navigation off the coast of Europe. However, he did not realise that he was standing on an enormous whale. The protagonist of this fanciful story was in fact called Saint Brandan of Clonfert.
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The five curiosities about the world's oldest globe
From the time it was made until the early 16th century, the globe remained in a reception room in the Nuremberg town hall. From then on, it became part of the estate of the Behaim family. In 1907, it was finally transferred to the German National Museum in Nuremberg.
By Aarp65 - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=31171458
The five curiosities about the world's oldest globe
Martin Behaim (Nuremberg, 6 October 1459 - Lisbon, 29 July 1507) was a German navigator, cartographer and astronomer, as well as a merchant, based in Nuremberg, Germany.
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