The Mercator Globes at Harvard Map Collection

The Mercator Globes at Harvard Map Collection contains Gerard Mercator's terrestrial and celestial globes (from 1541 and 1551, respectively). Mercator's globes mark the transition from globes from exclusive scholarly objects to more commercially available items. The Web site, run by Harvard, includes descriptions of both globes, including some historical and conservation data, and images of the globes themselves.

There is little information about the representation of color (how do I know that my computer settings accurately reflect the globe color?) or for that matter what the original color and detail of the globes looked like versus what they look like now. I would have liked more detail on the restoration process. There are a few images and links to images with explanations (such as the dedication cartouche or the sea monsters), although the site is general and clearly intended for the layman. A serious researcher would need to look elsewhere for more context, although the detail afforded in the image might be enough to avoid a trip to Harvard. The copyright statement says only that the images are property of Harvard. There is no metadata to speak of.

The images are delivered via the Harvard University Library's Image Delivery Service, with a good deal of easy-to-use functionality. The size of the image can be manipulated, and the image can be zoomed in 57-200%. On the terrestrial globe, the 200% zoom is close enough to see the individual brush strokes and foxing. The full image allows you to see where you are in relation to the whole at all times. You can also rotate the image, very helpful for place names written on an angle.

The celestial globe page offers a helpful list of Mercator vs. modern place names for the constellations. The zoom here is 525 to 200%. Again the full image offers the opportunity to see how the detail related to the whole--but in this case, not the whole sky but merely the whole constellation. Another more comprehensive view would have been helpful. With this globe it was harder to see where you were in the context of the whole globe.

All in all, this site is very useful both offering access to fragile, one-of-a-kind items and providing descriptions for laymen as to what we are looking at and why it is important. Moreover, the panning and scanning function of the images allow closer examination of the items than we would be allowed in real life. A drawback is the fact that only Explorer can be used at this time, a lack which presumably can and should be rectified soon. Overall, this project seems to offer the some of the best features of digitization, in that it affords access to the user while protecting the fragile object. I would like to see more metadata on the digitization and conservation processes, however.