The Most Successful 16th Century Geographic Fraud
The Greatest Phantom Island of the Old World.
Nicoló Zeno the Younger's attempt to co-opt Columbus's 1492 discovery of America and reattribute that feat to his own ancestors, Nicoló and Antonio Zeno. The Zeno mapping of the Arctic proved to be one of the most enduring cartographic frauds, persisting from the 16th through the 18th centuries - and beyond.
James Roy — December 01, 2023