ABSTRACT
For all the crudity of the woodcuts, Jacob Ziegler's maps were based on sound scholarship, and it is no surprise that his work was immediately used by an important successor. In 1537, a young man named Gerardus Mercator presented his map of the Holy Land under the title Amplissima Terrae Sanctae Descriptio ad Utriusque Testamenti Intelligentiam. Mercator states expressly that he has drawn his map of Palestine and of the Israelites' route from Egypt from Ziegler, 'the most faithful cartographer of these things'. Clearly, Mercator was chiefly concerned to illustrate the route of the Israelites from Egypt. It is hard to know Mercator's precise intentions. His title suggests that he is concerned with a better understanding of both Testaments, New and Old. The sixteenth century throughout shows the influence of Ziegler and Mercator. It shows also the continuing importance of the theme of the Exodus and the wilderness wanderings of the Israelites.
