WEBVTT - The Artifact: Map of the Underworld

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Stuff to Blow Your Mind, a production of

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<v Speaker 1>My Heart Radio. Hi, my name is Robert Lamb and

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<v Speaker 1>this is the Artifact, a short form series from Stuff

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<v Speaker 1>to Blow Your Mind, focusing on particular objects, ideas, and

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<v Speaker 1>moments in time. Let's consider the map a representation of

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<v Speaker 1>the world and miniature so that one can position themselves

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<v Speaker 1>in time and space and consider where they're going and

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<v Speaker 1>where they've been. They bring meaning out of what can

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<v Speaker 1>otherwise seem confusing and make the vast fathomable. So how

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<v Speaker 1>long have we been making maps? Well? According to you

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<v Speaker 1>see Santa Barbara geographer Keith C. Clark in a two

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<v Speaker 1>thousand thirteen paper for the Cartographical Journal, we often consider

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<v Speaker 1>maps and writing to go hand in hand, meaning that

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<v Speaker 1>we might reasonably date matt making back five thousand years.

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<v Speaker 1>But Clark goes much further, argue that maps may have

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<v Speaker 1>predated writing by at least ten thousand years and could

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<v Speaker 1>have evolved with humanity itself, tied to the spatial thinking

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<v Speaker 1>and reasoning that aided us in the great human expansion.

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<v Speaker 1>While many maps have obviously been lost to time, various

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<v Speaker 1>ancient maps are sometimes presented as the possible oldest surviving maps.

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<v Speaker 1>A carved mammoth tusk found in what is now the

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<v Speaker 1>Czech Republic, dated to twenty five thousand b c e.

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<v Speaker 1>Presents a possible map, complete with mountains, rivers, and what

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<v Speaker 1>seemed to be routes for human travelers. Various examples spring

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<v Speaker 1>from Mesopotamia and Egypt, as well, ancient cultures that certainly

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<v Speaker 1>exhibited planning and cartological expertise and a knowledge of their

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<v Speaker 1>place in a wider world. But interestingly enough, some of

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<v Speaker 1>the earliest examples of maps are not maps of the

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<v Speaker 1>Earth's surface, but of the stars, such as the dots

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<v Speaker 1>representing stars and the prehistoric Lascale cave paintings. According to

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<v Speaker 1>a two thousand eighteen University of Edinburgh study published in

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<v Speaker 1>the Athens Journal of History, such artifacts suggests that our

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<v Speaker 1>ancestors were able to keep time via the position of

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<v Speaker 1>the stars as far back as forty thousand years ago. Still,

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<v Speaker 1>other ancient examples of maps confirmed to neither Earth nor sky,

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<v Speaker 1>but to altogether imagined realms. Consider the casket texts from

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<v Speaker 1>ancient Egypt. Is Geraldine Pinch discusses in her book Egyptian Mythology.

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<v Speaker 1>These date from the Middle Kingdom, which lasted from twenty

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<v Speaker 1>fifty to seventeen ten BC. These texts consisted of incantations

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<v Speaker 1>recorded on casket's tomb walls and funerary artifacts. These spells

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<v Speaker 1>were believed to be vital to the deceased on their

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<v Speaker 1>perilous journey into the Egyptian after life, a realm of

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<v Speaker 1>continued threats and conflict, and some texts even feature maps.

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<v Speaker 1>The Book of Two Ways from the Middle Kingdom Necropolis

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<v Speaker 1>of Dear Albertia presents a map of the underworld, outlining

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<v Speaker 1>two safe paths for the deceased soul to take, one

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<v Speaker 1>by land and one by water, along with the spells

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<v Speaker 1>one would need to overcome the monstrous guardians that dwell there.

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<v Speaker 1>Pinch points out that we might consider such maps the

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<v Speaker 1>result of quote government funded research into the hereafter unquote,

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<v Speaker 1>but we also might think of them as visual guides

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<v Speaker 1>for shamatic spirit journeys. We might well think back to

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<v Speaker 1>the role of terrestrial maps and consider their cosmological function

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<v Speaker 1>in the Book of Two Ways, a means of bringing

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<v Speaker 1>order to chaos, assuring us not only where we are,

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<v Speaker 1>but we're we're headed. Maps of otherworldly realms would factor

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<v Speaker 1>into various religions to follow as well as literary works

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<v Speaker 1>ranging from Dante's Divine Comedy to the fantasy geographies of JR. Tolkien.

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<v Speaker 1>Just gazing at these maps, we are transported to the

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<v Speaker 1>world's They chart two into additional editions of the artifact

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<v Speaker 1>each week, hosted by either Joe or myself. As always,

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<v Speaker 1>you can email us at contact at stuff to Blow

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<v Speaker 1>your Mind dot com. Stuff to Blow Your Mind is

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<v Speaker 1>a production of I Heart Radio. For more podcasts from

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<v Speaker 1>my heart Radio, visit the i heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts,

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