Preserving America’s Birth Certificate

Posted by admin on Jul 8, 2009

Engineers designed a case to protect the map that first used the word “America” to describe the land masses now called North and South America. The air-tight container is made of two large sheets of aluminum and a double piece of non-reflective laminated glass. It also includes a system dedicated to maintaining the proper temperature and replacing all potentially destructive oxygen with inert argon gas.

A map thought lost for almost five centuries is found and is now on display. It’s often called America’s birth certificate.

Created in 1507, the Waldseemüller map is the first map to show a Pacific Ocean, the Western Hemisphere and a continent called America.

Source & Full Story

Log in to leave a comment. Sign In / Sign Up