The fabled land of Beach, Locach, Java La Grande, and Terra Australis Incognita
How 40,000 years after the first Australians arrived, Australia was “discovered” again
From Ptolemy in the 2nd century AD, geographers postulated that a great southern continent had to exist, to counterbalance the weight of the known northern hemisphere and prevent the world from tipping over. Through the ages, contemporary maps showed various representations of the unknown great southern land, using a multiplicity of geographic names.
Abraham Ortellius (1527-1598) Theatrum Orbis Terrarum (1570). Silentworld Collection SF000822.
