Fra Mauro (1459) (Mappamundi)
(Monk in Venice)
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Fra Mauro was a monk of the Camaldolese Monastery of St. Michael, located on the island of Murano in the Venetian Lagoon, (c.1400-1464). He created the most detailed and accurate map of the world up until that time, the Fra Mauro map. It was a major cartographical work that compiled much of the geographical knowledge of the time. The map covers over five square meters. The map is extremely detailed and contains many thousands of texts and illustrations.
http://geoweb.venezia.sbn.it/geoweb/Hsl/FraMauro/FMnumerico.html
On the Island of DIAB (1) we find many things that remember us of east Africa. One of the many legends (see under) of the map, near the southern extremity of Africa says:
About the year of Our Lord 1420 a ship, what is called an Indian junk (Zoncho de India) on a crossing of the sea of India towards the island of Men and Women, was driven by a storm beyond the Cape of Diap (Cavo de Diab) (the most southern point on the map), through the green Islands, (in Arab literature this is Zanzibar and Pemba), out into the Sea of Darkness on their way west and southwest, in the direction of Algarve (5). Nothing but air and water was seen for forty days and by they reckoning they ran 2,000 miles and fortune deserted them. When the stress of the weather had subsided they made the return to the said Cavo de Diab (1) in seventy days and drawing near to the shore to supply their wants the sailors saw the egg of a bird called roc (6), the egg being as big as a seven gallon cask (7), and the size of a bird is such that from the point of one wing to another was sixty paces (8) and it can quite easily lift an elephant or any other animal. It does great damage to the inhabitants and is very fast in its flight.
Note: others see in this an allusion to the voyages of Zheng He because above this text on the extreme southern tip of Africa is drawn a junk (the front of the ship is not ending in a point as in western or arab ships) and the date 1420 would also fit. As well as the description that a storm drove them back (see Mao-kun map)
At the Southern tip of Africa (top of the map = island of DIAB)(1) we have the following text. (the world map on top is upside down; so on the bottom.)
Fra Mauro seems to have had two informants giving him a list of cities of East Africa. The first being: Mogodisso, Xengibar, Soffala ;
The second: Chelue (Kilwa), Maabasa (9), Baraua (10), Mac-da-sui,
(Mogadishu) all are on the island of DIAB (1) and far into the ocean is still the island of Changibar. (Zanzibar)
And in the borderlands of Abassiaare (11) the rivers Galla (12) and Hilla (13). The name of the island Negila (Isola nebila) off the coast of Soffala means celebration in Arabic, and Mangula means fortunate in Sanskrit.
His account of east Africa is not accurate, but of Ethiopia it is, even rivers in the deep south of that country are accurately mentioned. For this he got most probably his information from the Ethiopian mission to Florence in 1441.
In Westafrica (right on the map) the text right is found:
A Chinese ship on his map. One can easily see that the front of the ship is not ending in a point as in western or arab ships.
The text under the ship reads: The ships, called junks, that navigate these seas carry four masts or more, some of which
can be raised or lowered, and have 40 to 60 cabins for the merchants and only one tiller. They can navigate without a
compass, because they have an astrologer, who stands on the side and, with an astrolabe in hand, gives orders to the
navigator.
Taken from; JSTOR Some Medieval theories about the Nile
The range of mountains in which are the sources of the
Nile is called Ciebelchamir (15), and in his remark inserted close by Fra Mauro states specifically that: The Nile rises in the provinces of Marora and Salgu (16), and flows by the side (costiera) of
a very high mountain called Marora (17) or Chamir. (Is mount Maraua
south of lake Ashangi) Ciebelchamir (15) is the Jebel Gamr or Mountains of the Moon of the Arabs.
We will now have a look on the detailed map and recognize the cities and places of East Africa. Detailed map on next webpage.
(1) Diab: Al-Dimashqi (1325) Nukhbat ad-dahr (Wonders of the world) P215-216
The islands of Diba (Laccadive and the Maldive) are a coherent group, with Arab people; the biggest island is called Diba or Diab, it is 400 miles in circumference, you find there the banana tree, sugar cane, the coconut tree and the cassier. It is a halting place for the ships going to Kish, Hormuz, India, Yemen, Magadoxo on the Zanguebar and Abyssinie.: Here with making the island of Diab big and connect it with East Africa; we see the beginning of the error that finally led Fra Mauro to add a big island of Diab in the south east of Africa and put on it the most important East African towns.
(2) Prester John: was a legendary Christian patriarch, presbyter, and king. At first, Prester John was imagined to reside in India. And eventually Portuguese explorers came to believe that they had found him in Ethiopia.
(3) Marco Polo: see my webpage Marco Polo (1295).
(4) Marino Sanudo: see my webpage Marino Sanudo (1320).
(5) Algarve: is located in the southernmost area of continental Portugal and the southwesternmost area of the Iberian Peninsula and mainland Europe.
(6) egg of a bird called roc: see my webpages of Buzurg (955) and Marco Polo (1295).
(7) Gallon: Brit: 4.5l : US: 3.8l.
(8) paces: is a unit of length consisting either of one normal walking step (approximately 0.75 metres).
(9) Maabasa: Mombasa in Kenya.
(10) Baraua: Brava: Harbour on the coast of South Somalia.
(11) Abassiaare: Habashe = the Arab for Ethiopia.
(12) the rivers Galla: is actually another term for Oromo tribe (in Ethiopia and Kenya).
(13) Hilla: small place on the Nile close to Meroe in Sudan.
(14) Murano: is a series of islands linked by bridges in the Venetian Lagoon, northern Italy. It lies about 1.5 kilometres north of Venice and measures about 1.5 km across.
(15) Ciebelchamir: Jebel-qamar; Mountain of the Moon; the traditional source of the Nile.
(16) Salgu: Tchelga where the Atbara has its source.: the Black Nile, is a river that rises in northwest Ethiopia, approximately 50 km north of Lake Tana.
(17) mountain called Marora: Mount Abuna Josef.
(18) For this document see my webpage: Fra Nicolo: Aviso di Fra Nicolo infrascripto da San Michiel di Murano (15th century)