Maps have played a central role in our understanding of what and where the north is. At the same time, the northernmost reaches of our world have, for much of history, been difficult to navigate and verify, from the mythical islands on medieval maps to the itineraries of Arctic explorers in the nineteenth century. This has inspired inventive mapping strategies, as well as ongoing struggles to define what constitutes believable cartographic information.

This beautifully illustrated book takes the reader on a journey to examine the rich, and sometimes contentious, history of how mapmakers have understood and processed knowledge about a region they described as ‘the north’. In the process of mapping, the north as a place changed from an inaccessible and vividly imagined unknown to a region claimed and exploited by southern nations. What emerges is a riveting story of exploration, survival and cartographic skill bound up with conceptions of nature, religion and politics extending far beyond the Arctic.