The map showing the two hemispheres of the world in the Hunterian collection was designed for the Second Qing Emperor of China, Kangxi (1662-1722) by the Jesuit Father Ferdinand Verbiest (1623-88 ...

When many people picture a map of the world, what they're probably thinking of is a Mercator projection, a representation that despite its apparent distortions has been around more than 400 years.