SANSON MAP 1650

Nicolas Sanson is considered the father of French cartography. This map, published 1650 in Paris, shows Sanson's scientific method of cartography—details that were not verifiable as fact are not included, and features are presented simply and clearly. But little was known of Africa's interior in the mid-seventeenth century so Sanson relied on Dutch sources such as Hondius and Ortelius. Hence the Nile's source is in southern Africa from Lakes Zazflan and Congo.