Abraham Ortelius

Abraham Ortelius
Ortelius by Peter Paul Rubens, 1633, after a 1570s engraving by Philip Galle
Born	4 or 14 April 1527 Antwerp, Habsburg Netherlands
Died	28 June 1598(1598-06-28) (aged 71) Antwerp, Spanish Netherlands
Nationality	Spanish Netherlands
Occupation(s)	Geographer, cartographer
Known for	Creator of the first modern atlas; proposing the idea of continental drift
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Abraham Ortelius (/ɔːrˈtiːliəs/; also Ortels, Orthellius, Wortels; 4 or 14 April 1527 – 28 June 1598) was a cartographer, geographer, and cosmographer from Antwerp in the Spanish Netherlands. He is recognized as the creator of the first modern atlas, the Theatrum Orbis Terrarum (Theatre of the World). Along with Gemma Frisius and Gerardus Mercator, Ortelius is generally considered one of the founders of the Netherlandish school of cartography and geography. He was a notable figure of this school in its golden age (approximately 1570s–1670s) and an important geographer of Spain during the age of discovery. The publication of his atlas in 1570 is often considered as the official beginning of the Golden Age of Netherlandish cartography. He was the first person proposing that the continents were joined before drifting to their present positions.^[1]