When was the first map drawn in the world?

Maps are necessary tools for people to know, understand and transform the world. The map represents the technological development level of an era. In the process of human invention and use, maps reflect history, geography, customs, lifestyles, literature and art, ways of thinking and values, convey special cultural information and accumulate profound cultural connotations.

The Evolution of Maps With its unique mathematical foundation, graphic symbols and abstract general laws, maps show the world phenomena on the natural surface of the earth or other planets and reflect the state, connection and development of human cultural phenomena. With the progress of science and technology and the improvement of surveying and mapping methods, maps have gradually become our basic tool to change the world and will help us plan the future better.

1. Early maps were difficult to determine the drawing time, purpose and place of the first map. However, we can be sure that early maps had different forms for different purposes. The map of Babylon carved on pottery more than 4500 years ago is the earliest map that people can find now. According to textual research, it was the ancients who used symbols to record or explain their living environment, which played a role in determining the orientation and distinguishing the direction.

In ancient Greece, many philosophers and mathematicians played an indelible role in the theoretical research of map making, which laid the foundation for map making.

For example, the mathematician Pythagoras proposed that the world is a sphere; Eratosthenes wrote two books, Methods of Measuring the Earth and Geography, and applied longitude and latitude lines to maps for the first time.

Ptolemy expounded the method of map drawing in Introduction to Geography and put forward two kinds of map projection. Today, Ptolemy's cartography theory still dominates cartography, especially the drawing of topographic maps and world maps.

The earliest known maps in China can be traced back to about 2 100 BC, but the earliest maps are topographic maps and garrison maps drawn in 130 BC. This shows that as early as the Han Dynasty, China people established a set of map system with scale as the center. Later, Pei Xiu of the Western Jin Dynasty founded the "Cartographic Six-body", which improved the reliability of the oriental map.

After the early maps were upgraded from model maps to plan maps, general maps such as world maps and nautical charts were gradually derived, as well as various thematic maps such as administrative division maps, military phalanx maps and overseas geographical maps, which began to become a tool world for human beings to understand the world.

2. The map after the Renaissance lasted for two and a half centuries, which not only carried forward the lofty spirit of mankind, but also greatly expanded the concept of human space. People urgently need to know more about the world. With the rapid development of surveying and mapping technology, the requirements for surveying and mapping means are constantly improving.

1569, the cartographer Mercator drew a cylindrical projection map of the world by Mercator projection method, which marked the beginning of modern geography era. With the introduction of triangulation into Europe, the major innovation of mapping and navigation instruments such as flat plotter, theodolite, astrolabe and navigation manual, and the introduction of oriental printing, the map making method in Europe has undergone revolutionary changes. Map features began to be replaced by unified symbols, and cartographers began to pay more attention to the proportional expression of the objective world, making the map more consistent and professional. Since17th century, many countries have set up surveying and mapping institutions to take charge of surveying and mapping national basic topographic maps, and gradually formed a series of maps with different scales, different projection methods, different map sheets, different legend symbols and different representation methods.

Since the second half of the17th century, the dominant position of map making has shifted from the Netherlands to France. Louis XIV drew a new map of France, and after the implementation of the "European Survey Plan", he sent people to visit all parts of the world and accurately drew a map of the world. Among them, many missionaries came to China to participate in the national surveying and mapping survey organized by the Qing government, which promoted the introduction of western cartography into China. Surveying and mapping work lasted 10 years. 17 18, * * * completed 32 maps of Huang Yu and provinces. However, the Qing government hid it in the official government and failed to play its role in economic and social development. But was brought back to Europe by the priest, so that the world could know China again and draw a map of the world accurately.

3. Map of Modern World In the 20th century, with the emergence and mature application of new surveying and mapping technologies such as aerial photography, satellite remote sensing and map database, map making has taken on a brand-new look, and maps are playing an increasingly important role in changing the world.

With the appearance of cameras, people began to try to take ground photos from balloons and planes to draw maps. 19 10, the stereo mapping instrument for aerial photogrammetry was successfully developed. In less than half a century, aerial photogrammetry has fundamentally changed the surveying and mapping production process developed over the past 300 years. The combination of aerial photography and aerial remote sensing technology makes it possible to make large-scale topographic maps. The launch of man-made earth satellite initiated a new era of global remote sensing mapping. With the improvement of space remote sensing image resolution, it provides more accurate source data for map updating and thematic mapping, and changes the technological process of gradually reducing mapping from large scale. The application of map database and geographic information system (GIS) enables topographic maps, thematic maps and remote sensing information to be collected and stored on the basis of unified geographic coordinates, which changes the way of data collection and processing, map production, distribution and use, and makes map drawing enter a new stage of computer-aided drawing.