The Map of the Coatzacoalcos River (1580): The First Cartography of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec

The Coatzacoalcos River is one of the most important rivers in Mexico. The oldest map of this river was drawn by Francisco Gali in 1580. Unlike most maps made in New Spain in the last quarter of the sixteenth century, this map is purely European in style and is somewhat reminiscent of a nautical cha...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Cartographic journal 2022-07, Vol.59 (3), p.167-186
Main Authors: Morato-Moreno, Manuel, Gentil-Baldrich, José-María
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Coatzacoalcos River
Francisco Gali
Mexico
Sixteenth Century
Spanish America
Tehuantepec Isthmus
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Summary:The Coatzacoalcos River is one of the most important rivers in Mexico. The oldest map of this river was drawn by Francisco Gali in 1580. Unlike most maps made in New Spain in the last quarter of the sixteenth century, this map is purely European in style and is somewhat reminiscent of a nautical chart. Analysis of the map suggests that it was made hastily. Both the errors in the distances and the numerous corrections that can still be observed support this conjecture. It seems that Francisco Gali was more interested from his point of view as an explorer and navigator in the most important aspect of the region: the possibility of connecting the North Sea and the South Sea through the Strait of Tehuantepec. In this respect, the map of Coatzacoalcos would have been drawn to show the viability of using the river as an interoceanic passage.
ISSN:0008-7041
1743-2774
DOI:10.1080/00087041.2021.1995126