Weekly Links!

Hey everyone, since I use the internet more than is probably good for me, I thought I would do some weekly research and post links to interesting map-related things. :)

First, if you haven't heard of the Bayeux Tapestry, you should check out its history and pictures here. (As far as design goes, the website is an eyesore, but is one of the best resources for information about the tapestry and pictures of the Victorian replica. The true tapestry resides in France.) The Bayeux Tapestry is an excellent example of an event map or timeline, which illustrates the Norman conquest of England in the year 1066. It is completely hand embroidered and measures at over 70 metres. Because the tapestry depicts a conquest, and was commissioned to glorify William the Conqueror, it is especially interesting to note the obvious bias in the details.

Bringing textile maps into a new era is designer Florian Pucher, who won the "Best Floor Covering Design" at the Elle Deco International Design Awards for his LANDCARPET line of area rugs. These rugs utilise the geometric beauty of American, European, African, and Scandinavian farmland, as seen from above, embodying the simplicity of an aerial map in a home design piece. The rugs run in a limited edition of 88 pieces per design, and can be ordered from the designer for $1200 - 2100. In addition, Pucher designed a one-of-a-kind rug depicting Italy, which sold at auction for nearly 10k.

Finally, a bit of humour from my favourite webcomic, xkcd. We all have our various haunts around the internet, but Randall Munroe used a combination of real data gathering and "some guesswork" to produce a map of online communities. (This is, unfortunately, circa 2007: I imagine the balances have shifted since then. I hope he'll do an update soon.) Peppered with witty commentary, Munroe's map illustrates the popularity of various online communities by correlating geographic area with the best statistics he could find. The end result is informative and amusing. I highly suggest reading the rest of his webcomic, too!

See you all next week!

--Sarah