551. Drawing imaginary lines: Asia’s metageographies according to Portuguese geographical descriptions and cartography of the sixteenth century

Abstract

One of the main consequences of the re-establishment of regular contacts between Europe and Asia from the early sixteenth century onwards was the redefinition of large spatial structures thought to organize the distribution of Asian spaces.

This is an exercise in symbolic and ideological projection which was first structured by the agents and networks of the Portuguese Empire in Asia, having had a long-lasting influence on how the spatial perception this part of the Ancient World was shaped. For our analysis we selected some of the most significant Portuguese geographical synthesis of the sixteenth century on Asia. These sources were related with other European texts and a set of contemporary maps, particularly Portuguese. This review deals with a central issue of cognitive geography, which directly challenges the relationship between the cultural heritage underlying the geographical representations and the specific geopolitical contexts that framed those representations.