Fantastical Maps

An exhibition by Zentralbibliothek Zürich in cooperation with Ex Carta • 4.9. – 5.12.2026

The exhibition Fantastical Maps From Legendary Stories is based on J. R. R. Tolkien’s concept of the Cauldron of Story, which understands stories as the result of an ongoing process of cultural exchange: myths, fairy tales, historical traditions, and literary motifs are continually recombined and developed over the course of centuries. The exhibition applies this theoretical model to cartography, where it serves as its conceptual foundation.

Rather than organising the material by genre or medium, the exhibition sets up cronological dialogue between historical and fictional maps, thereby revealing both their mutual influences on each other and the mechanisms by which fantastical storyworlds have emerged. In this context, maps are understood not merely as aids to orientation or as illustrations, but as narrative media in their own right: they structure conceptions of space, help shape stories, and connect bodies of cultural knowledge across time and media.

For Fantastical Maps from Legendary Stories, 60 objects from Ex Carta are on public display for the first time, bringing them into dialogue with the historical cartographic holdings of the Zentralbibliothek Zürich.

The juxtaposition of these two complementary collections highlights the direct relationship between historical and fictional maps, thus rendering visible the interplay of geographical knowledge, visual traditions, and imagined worlds of story.

The Medieval Worldview

Medieval maps were not primarily intended for geographical orientation, but rather to represent a divinely ordered world. They situated narratives from history, religion, and mythology within a spatial framework and conveyed a worldview in which the entirety of creation was understood as the expression of a higher divine plan. Maps thus became media that brought together knowledge, faith, and cosmological order.

Fantastical Realms as Part of Reality

From a medieval perspective, the world was inherently full of wonders. Alongside familiar landscapes, it encompassed the earthly Paradise, gateways to Hell, magical places, and marvellous peoples, animals, and plants. These elements were not regarded as mere fantasy, but as credible parts of creation, making the world a space in which reality and imagination intertwined.

Monsters at the Edge of the World

At the edges of the known world, maps were often populated by monstrous beings and other extraordinary creatures. They demarked the unknown, drew on traditions inherited from antiquity and the Middle Ages, and lent the representations additional authority. At the same time, they demonstrate that medieval maps were far more than geographical representations: they combined empirical knowledge with narrative traditions, transforming the world into a reality that was both narrated and charted.



Ludvig Holberg’s (1684–1754) Nicolai Klimii iter subterraneum anticipates later narratives of hollow worlds and subterranean realms, themes that would reappear in the nineteenth century in works by authors such as Jules Verne.

The illustration depicted here visualises Holberg’s imaginary cosmos, with a central inner sun surrounded by orbiting worlds containing fantastical lands.

The Map as the Starting Point of the Story

With the rise of the adventure novel in the eighteenth century, the map developed into a central narrative element. Daniel Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe (1719) already demonstrates the close relationship between spatial orientation and plot. In some works, the map even preceded the story itself and provided its conceptual foundation, as in Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island (1883). The map structures the setting, guides the characters’ journeys, and establishes the spatial framework in which the adventure unfolds.

Spaces Full of Promise

Fictional maps not only organise landscapes but also create expectations. Named islands, bays, and hills lend depth and atmosphere to the world depicted, while marked locations, crosses, and marginal notes point to hidden treasures and unknown mysteries. In this way, the map transforms topography into a narrative promise, inviting readers to explore the depicted world in their imagination.

From Adventure to Science Fiction

In the nineteenth century, the adventure novel reached another high point with the works of Jules Verne (1828–1905). His narratives combine voyages of discovery with scientific and technological concepts and are also regarded as precursors of modern science fiction. This dual significance is reflected in the exhibition, where Verne’s work is explored in two thematic contexts, serving as a link between adventure fiction and science fiction.

The lithograph The Broad and the Narrow Way belongs to the tradition of pietistic Two Ways images that enjoyed a period of popularity in southern Germany. In these images, a narrow path leads to the golden and joyful Heavenly Jerusalem, while the other – the broader and more comfortable path – leads directly to damnation.

An adventurous journey through life: halfway along the route (in the upper half of the image), there is still an opportunity to cross a narrow footbridge from the broad path to the narrow one – and possibly in the opposite direction as well.

Maps as Gateways to Fantastical Worlds

With the emergence of children’s literature as a distinct genre in the English-speaking world after 1800, maps became increasingly important. They gave visual form to imaginary settings and lent them credibility through seemingly precise geographical representation. In this way, fantastical worlds emerged that, despite their imaginary nature, appeared internally coherent and capable of being experienced as real.

Orientation and Identification

Fictional maps structure the storyworld, situating characters and settings within familiar spaces in which young readers can find their bearings. By tracing the journeys of the protagonists on the map, readers themselves become part of the narrated journey. Maps thus not only enhance the spatial understanding of the story but also encourage identification with its characters and invite readers to actively explore fantastical worlds.

The Creation of Entire Worlds

High fantasy is characterised by self-contained, entirely invented worlds. These so-called secondary worlds have their own geography, history, culture, religion, and frequently their own systems of magic. The creation of an internally consistent world – known as worldbuilding – forms the foundation of the narrative, lending it credibility and depth.

Maps as the Foundation of Worldbuilding

J.R.R. Tolkien (1892–1973) set new standards for the genre through his creation of Middle-earth. For Tolkien, the map was not an illustration added after the fact, but a starting point for the development of landscapes, routes of travel, and narrative threads. Since then, maps have become a defining feature of high fantasy: they structure the fictional world, facilitate spatial orientation, and invite readers to explore the imagined world beyond the boundaries of the text itself.

Maps as Interactive Narrative Spaces

Today, fantastical worlds are no longer created exclusively in literature, but also in role-playing games, video games, and films. Maps provide geographical coherence, aid orientation, and lend credibility to these fictional worlds. They form the spatial framework within which stories are told, explored, and experienced.

Maps as Collaborative Creations

In contrast to literary cartography, maps in many games take shape only as the game unfolds. New places and landscapes emerge from the players’ decisions and expand as the narrative develops. Maps thus become the product of collaborative worldbuilding, an approach that has characterised the role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons since 1974.

Fan Communities and the Expansion of Fictional Worlds

Beyond the original works, fan communities also contribute to the continued development of fantastical worlds. They expand existing geographies, reinterpret maps, or develop them further, thereby becoming co-creators of the storyworld themselves. Maps document this ongoing process and demonstrate how fictional universes can grow far beyond their literary origins.

Maps as Part of the Narrative

Maps are a defining feature of many of Jules Verne’s (1828–1905) novels. They were often based on the author’s own designs, as in Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea or the fictional Lincoln Island in The Mysterious Island.

Some are presented as seemingly authentic expedition documents and dated to correspond with events in the narrative. As a result, they function not merely as illustrations but as integral parts of the journey being recounted, lending the adventures an additional sense of authenticity.