description Diego Homem Overview
Diego Homem (1521–1576) was a Portuguese cartographer from a Lisbon chartmaking family and later worked in England. He is best known for the Queen Mary Atlas, a richly decorated manuscript atlas produced around 1558 with portolan-style charts of the world known to Europeans. Its pages combine coastal outlines, rhumb lines, place names, and elaborate illumination, reflecting a luxury production made for royal or aristocratic patronage rather than ordinary navigation.
help Diego Homem FAQ
Who was Diego Homem?
Diego Homem was a Portuguese cartographer who lived from 1521 to 1576. He came from a Lisbon chartmaking family and later worked in England.
What is the Queen Mary Atlas?
The Queen Mary Atlas is a richly decorated manuscript atlas associated with Diego Homem and produced around 1558. Its portolan-style charts depict the world as it was known to European mapmakers.
Why is Diego Homem's atlas important?
The atlas shows how sixteenth-century European cartographers combined navigation charts with elaborate decoration and geographic information. It is also evidence of the international movement of Portuguese mapmaking knowledge.
What is a portolan chart like the ones in the Queen Mary Atlas?
A portolan chart is a navigational map built around coastlines, ports, and networks of rhumb lines. In the Queen Mary Atlas, that practical seafaring tradition appears within a highly ornamental manuscript atlas.
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