The Piri Reis Map of 1513

11. Conclusions

1 1 C o n c l u s i o n s In the preceding analysis, it has been demonstrated that the Piri Reis map of 1513exhibits many features in common with other surviving portolan charts and extended portolan-style maps of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries and fits well into the evolution of mapmaking from the late Middle Ages to the early Renaissance. It resembles the contemporary Portuguese maps of Francisco Rodrigues, especiallythe delineations of the west coast of Africa, the east coast of South America, and the island of San Mateo, aswell as the inscription which suggests that the castle at Elmina or a Portuguese padräo was depicted on the missing coast of Africa. A Portuguese map wasalso the apparent source for the land connection between South America and the Southern Continent, similarly shown on the Lopo Homem world map and 122 implied on the Reinel maps. All of these features confirm Piri Reis's statements that he used Portuguese maps as sources for making his world map. Although there are features on the Piri Reis map which at first appeared to be unusual, such as the connection of Terra Australis to South America, the orientation of Hispaniola, and the depiction of Cuba as continental, these and other features of the map are not unexpected on a map of the early sixteenth century. Even the distortion and reduction of the east-west breadth of the Caribbean is not unusual: the Arabic Haji Abu al-Hasan chart, contemporary with Piri Reis, severely distorts the coast of Scandinavia and the south coast of Africa so that they will fit onto the vellum of the chart.1 Similarly, Cuba on the Zorzi maplets is omitted because of insufficient room in the margins of the manuscript.2 Several place-names, some of which are easily identifiable, apparently have "migrated" from the feature to which the name was originally applied to an adjacent feature (see figs. 28,29, and 30). Some of these "nomad" place-names are Palme and He Fero (i.e., Palma and Ferro, which have traded positions), Dösiyta (from Dèsirade northward to the approximate position of St. Kitts), Galanda (from Marie-Galante to the approximate position of St. Eustatius), Samocristi (from either St. Croix or St. Kitts to the approximate position of St. Eustatius), Paksin vidad (from the north coast of Hispaniola to the south coast), Birbinic (from Alta Vela to the position of Isla Catalina or Isla Saona), and Santa maria (from near the south coast of Cuba to Alta Vela). Although it was not unusual for place-names to be relocated when copying from one map to another, there do seem to be an unusual number on the Piri Reis map that were misplaced. This may have been the fault of the professional calligrapher used by Piri Reis, or it may have been due to Piri Reis himself. It appears also that in compiling multiple maps into one, the place-names on the source maps were sometimes translated and in other cases transliterated.3 This may be due to Piri Reis or the calligrapher not being totally familiar with the languages of the source maps, e.g., Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, etc. We have also seen that Piri Reis offered a few particularly strange and incorrect guesses as to the origin of some place-names, such as Ovosano (Océano) from ovo sano and Me de Vaha (Y.Salvaga?) from Isla de Vaca. In the Bahriye, he offered many etymologies for Mediterranean place-names.4 It also appears he misread some of the place-names on his source maps, such as mistaking Castella y Beragua for Castella Barrueco, i.e., Castle Pearl, and therefore writing Qal'at feridat, and mistaking a map notation, "Esta en Asia," i.e., "This is in Asia," for a place-name, Istonasia. The name for Hispaniola, Elcezire Izle despanya , is a hybrid of Turkish (or Arabic) and Spanish words and place-names. Although his translation of Alto Velo ("high veil" or "tall sail") as Birbinif, i.e., Conclusions f 123 Figure 28. Possible misplaced place-names in the Atlantic Ocean on the Piri Reis map and their suggested correct locations. Figure 29. Possible misplaced place-names in South America on the Piri Reis map and their suggested correct locations. Figure 30. Possible misplaced place-names in the Caribbean on the Piri Reis map and their suggested correct locations...