ABRAHAM ORTELIUS OF ANTWERP

SENDS GREETINGS TO HIS BENEVOLENT READERS.

Since I believe it is clear to everyone how useful the knowledge of history is, kind reader, I am convinced that there is almost no one—even if they have only "tasted it with the tips of their lips" as the saying goes—who does not know how necessary the knowledge of Geography is for understanding history correctly. Geography has been deservedly called the "eye of History" by some.
original: "Geographiæ (quæ meritò à quibusdam Historiæ oculus appellata est)." This was a common humanist proverb, suggesting that history cannot be "seen" or visualized without a geographical context.
Many things occur in histories, if not nearly everything, which cannot be understood well unless you have some knowledge of places. In fact, they are sometimes understood in a way that is contrary to the truth. This happens especially in the expeditions of Kings and Emperors, the migrations of different peoples, and the travels and journeys of famous men through various regions. Since experience itself teaches this, there is no reason for me to explain it further here.

This necessary knowledge of Geography, as many excellent and learned men have testified, can be sought and learned most easily from Geographic Tables maps. Once we have become somewhat accustomed to the use of these maps, or have even gained a moderate knowledge of Geography from them, whatever we read sticks in the memory much longer. The maps are placed before our eyes like mirrors. Only then do we seem to perceive what we read with any real benefit. I will also mention that the reading of history seems much more pleasant if, with maps laid before our eyes, we can look upon the deeds performed, or the places where they occurred, as if we were present. Everyone likely experiences this when we read in the Holy Scriptures about the journey of the Israelites from Egypt through the Red Sea and the nearly immense wilderness into the promised land. If we look at a map of Palestine, we see it as if we were there.

Considering this, it is easy to see how much students of history are hindered, held back, or even pulled back in their progress. All descriptions of regions cannot always be obtained. Even if they can be found, they are often too expensive for everyone to buy, especially since many people are of modest means. There are many who delight in Geography or Chorography the description or mapping of specific regions or districts, particularly in the various maps and sketches of regions that exist. However, because they do not have the money to spend on them, or because they are unwilling to pay the high prices they usually command, they do without them and remain unsatisfied. There are also those who have the money and would buy them very willingly, but the lack of space prevents these wide sheets of paper from being unfolded and viewed conveniently.

To tell the truth, those large and ample geographic maps, when rolled up, are not very convenient. They are not easy to look at when one is reading something. To hang them all in order on a wall would require not just a very large and wide house, but a "Royal Theater" original: "Regio quodam Theatro." This is a play on the title of the book, implying the world is a stage or a spectacle to be viewed.. Having experienced this often, I began to think of a method to cure these inconveniences, or at least to reduce them. At last, it seemed that it could be done using the method we have followed in this book of ours. We hope and wish that anyone will easily find a place for this among their books.

To help you understand what we have provided in this Theater of ours, and what you should expect from it, I have decided to explain it briefly. First, it was our intention to represent to you whatever you might have had, or still have, in any geographic or chorographic maps published either recently or many years ago. Because many of those older maps can no longer be found, we have approached the work in this way. For all the regions where geographic maps exist, we have selected one that is, in our judgment, the best of all. Even though that map might have been large and wide, into it...