U.S. acquires $10-million map
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The Library of Congress has purchased the Waldseemuller world map of 1507, the first known document to call a land mass “America.” The chart is also the first to depict two oceans instead of one.
The library purchased the 4 1/2-foot-by-8-foot chart -- drawn in France by German mapmaker Martin Waldseemuller and his associates -- from Prince Johannes Waldburg-Wolfegg of Germany.
The price was $10 million, making it the most expensive single item ever acquired by the library. Congress paid $5 million. The rest came from private donors.
The map will be unveiled to the American public on July 24.
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