A NEW exhibition at the Bodleian Library celebrates maps, the stories they tell and the history of the controversial Cutteslowe Walls.

Talking Maps starts on Friday at the Weston Library and showcases iconic treasures from the Bodleian’s world-renowned collection of more than 1.5 million maps, together with exciting new works on loan.

Featuring ‘imaginary maps’ such as Grayson Perry’s Red Carpet and Map of Nowhere and JRR Tolkien’s maps of Middle-earth, the exhibition offers a new perspective on the enduring power of maps.

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There is also a map showing the position of the Cutteslowe Walls.

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Built in 1934, the walls divided the city council’s Cutteslowe estate from private housing until they came down in 1959.

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Jerry Brotton, co-curator of the exhibition, said: “Every map tells a story. The exhibition shows how maps are creative objects that establish conversations between the people who made them and the individuals and communities that use them.”

Oxford Mail:

Talking Maps explores how maps are neither transparent objects of scientific communication, nor ideological tools but proposals about the world that help people to understand who they are by describing where they are.

It shows how cities are administered using maps, and how they can also be used to deceive its attackers; how maps are used in war, and drawing national boundaries; and how artists can use them to reflect on the state of our nation in light of Brexit.

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Others provide routes to religious salvation, while online interactive maps show us the global and environmental challenges we face in the 21stcentury.

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The exhibition is curated by Jerry Brotton, Professor of Renaissance Studies at Queen Mary University of London and author of A History of the World in Twelve Maps, and Nick Millea, Map Librarian at the Bodleian.

Oxford Mail:

Mr Millea said: “Talking Maps highlights the diverse and surprising role of maps through the ages, from guides to the afterlife and windows into alternative worlds to tools that have been used to manage land, nations and empires.”

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Other highlights include the iconic Gough Map (late 14th-century), the earliest surviving map showing Great Britain in a recognisable form and historic maps of Oxford, including never-before-displayed maps of Thomas Sharp’s post-war plan to redesign the city.

Catriona Cannon, Deputy Librarian at the Bodleian, said: “The unparalleled historical richness and cultural diversity of the Bodleian’s map collection make it one of the greatest cartographic collections in the world.”

The exhibition runs until March.

For more information visit bodleian.ox.ac.uk