About the lecture:
The Library of Lost Maps
This lecture will feature some of the treasures from UCL’s long-forgotten map library to reveal the importance of maps to some of the most significant moments in the 19th and 20th centuries. It will detail UCL’s unique place in the history of map making, which began when the university’s founders created a subscription atlas that became one of most successful series of maps ever created, with more than 3 million maps printed. Fast forward to the 1970s and UCL was also at the forefront of the revolution to develop “Geographic Information Systems (GIS)”, the basis to the digital maps we take for granted today. In his talk, James will reveal why cartography really matters and how map-making has helped transform our understanding of the world around us.
UCL's popular public Lunch Hour Lecture series has been running at UCL since 1942, and showcases the exceptional research work being undertaken across UCL. Lectures are free and open to all and since 2020 have been held online.
About the speaker:
James Cheshire is Britain’s only Professor of Geographic Information and Cartography. He is the inaugural Director of the UCL Social Data Institute and as a world-leading map maker, his cartographic creations have been enjoyed by millions. He is an elected fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences and has been recognised with many prestigious awards from the likes of the Royal Geographical Society and the British Cartographic Society. His co-authored book Atlas of the Invisible won the American Association of Geographer’s Globe Award.
About the chair:
Dr Katherine Parker is the Cartographic Collections Manager at the Royal Geographical Society, where she works to preserve and promote the Society’s over one million maps. She is also the co-editor of Imago Mundi: The International Journal for the History of Cartography, the Administrative Editor of the Hakluyt Society, and a lecturer in the history of London architecture at NYU London.
