In Praise of Hand-Drawn Maps

Last March, journalist Jessica Clark of In These Times Magazine joined us on Word of Mouth to talk about the ways people are taking cartography to a new level using internet-based map-making technologies (Click here to listen to that interview.)

One mapping website, though, eschews such new-fangled bells and whistles, and instead celebrates a more old-fashioned approach to the craft.

The Hand Drawn Map Association collects maps that people have created without the help of Mapquest or Google Maps. Some are simple, hurried, sketches that describe how to get to get from one place to another; Others are more conceptual, detailing, for example, the arrangement of stars over Pennsylvania.

Both of the images posted here come from the Hand Drawn Map Association’s website. Click here to see more.