Читать книгу Geography For Dummies - Jerry T. Mitchell - Страница 88

An atlas is a book of maps. For the longest time, maps were published singly and tended to be stored as rolled-up scrolls standing in a corner. Gerardus Mercator was apparently the first person to compile a book of maps. His publisher decided to decorate the cover with a likeness of Atlas, the legendary Greek giant who supported Earth and the heavens on his shoulders. Other books of maps copied Mercator’s idea and the image of Atlas on the cover or title page became standard — which is why such volumes are called atlases.