Iceland, 1595 Mercator atlas. 16th-century Dutch map of Iceland, with inscriptions and labels in Latin. Volcanic activity (flames) and a whale are shown. A list of eight major fjords is at upper left. The map-maker is Flemish cartographer Gerardus Mercator (1512-1594, named at lower right). The scale used is the 'Miliaria Germanica comunia' (German miles, lower left). The compass positions are given as: Septentrio (Big Dipper or North), Oriens (Sunrise or East), Occidens (Sunset or West), and Meridies (Midday or South). This posthumous copy of this map is from 'Atlas Sive Cosmographicae Meditationes de Fabrica Mundi et Fabricati Figura' (Duisburg, 1595).