In the library of the University of Munich have found a hitherto unknown instance map of the world, created by famous cartographer Martin Waldseemuller approximately 500 years ago. The find became real sensation because until now has been known to scientists only four copies of the map of the world of work first cartographer who called America America.

Two collaborators of the library of the University named Ludwig-Maximilians (Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitat/ LMU) found the most valuable card under inconspicuous library the cover of the XIX century. Map of Waldseemuller was between two printed pages of the book on geometry, according to the Frankfurter Rundschau. Library Director Klaus-Rainer Brenzinger (Klaus-Rainer Brintzinger) stated bluntly: "We made a sensational discovery".

This is the earliest copy of the card small size, made frejbergsom cartographer Martin Waldseemuller (Martin Waldseem?ller, 1470-1522), which is called the godfather of the word "America". If not for him, both the mainland could still be called Columbiana, but this German cartographer not considered a real discoverer of the New world Amerigo Vespucci airport (Amerigo Vespucci)instead of Christopher Columbus (Christoph Kolumbus) and reflected this in their maps.

On the map the area of three square meters presents all the then known with two hemispheres. German masters of Waldseemuller and his colleague Matias Ringmann (Matthias Ringmann), who worked in the monastery of Saint-die-des-Vosges (Saint-Aim-des-Vosges) in France, printed and smaller maps, which consisted of 12 segments, printed on one sheet. They had to be cut and glue went for a ball with a diameter of about 11 inches.

Up to the present Munich findings were known only four copies of the map of the world. One of them was sold by auction house Christie's in 2005 for a million dollars. Exactly 500 years after the emergence of this memorable map of the world, in 2007, German Chancellor Angela Merkel gave it to the American people. This instance is in the list of UNESCO world heritage site, it can be seen in the Library of Congress.

According to the information morgenweb.de this map has long been the property of the princely family Waldburg-Wolfegg-und Waldsee (Waldburg-Wolfegg und Waldsee) and unavailable to the public. In 2001 the head of the house Johannes zu Waldburg-Wolfegg (Johannes zu Waldburg-Wolfegg) sold map for 800 thousand euros.

Munich map differs from its predecessors, says Sven Kuttner (Sven Kuttner)that the library is managed by the Department of ancient books. The outlines of the upper wedges made less distinctly. The city of Kozhikode (formerly known as Calicut) on the Malabar coast in the Indian state of Kerala, where in may 1498 landed Vasco da Gama (Vasco da Gama), located on the fourth, not on the fifth segment of the map.

The hatch style and form some of the letters are different from the other copies. Judging by the water sign, this copy has appeared some time after the first edition 1507 somewhere in Alsace. For historians, it is very important to trace the history of appearance of any of the artifact. Now, in the case of card it is unclear how likely in error - after 200 years, it has been mentioned in a book on geometry.

As for the books, which got a card, then German punctuality made her fate is more or less clear. On the website of the Munich University named Ludwig-Maximilians set out the next version. Library funds of the German library during the Second world war, a refuge from the bombing, they Packed in special boxes and sent in safe points. A book with a card was in the mailbox number 340, which in November 1942, was the first in Burghausen (Burghausen), and in February 1944 was transferred to Neertibam (Niederviehbach).

In September 1955 the book is back in Munich library. Treatise on geometry was printed in possession of the Benedictine monastery of Oberliga (Oberalteich), as many as 1400 volumes from his library in the course of secularization 1803 got on the shelves of the University library of Landshut (Landshut).

Map could be located together with another rarity University library of Munich, namely Cosmographiae Introductio - "Introduction to cosmography" Martin Waldseemuller. This incunabula belonged to the Swiss humanist and universal scientist Henry Loreti Glareolus (Heinrich Loriti Glareanus, 1488-1563). Later, his library fell into the hands of the Bishop of Augsburg Johann Egolf Carinhoso (Johann Egolph von Kn?ringen, 1537-1575) at the time when he studied in Freiburg. More than 6 thousand volumes in his library he bequeathed in 1573 University library Ingolstadt (Ingolstadt).