The Japan-like islands on the Vinland Map (was Find or Fraud)

hippo wrote in message ...
>
>"David B"  wrote in message
>
>> take a look right over at the eastern side of the
>> Vinland map, and consider the curious resemblance of the three northern
>> islands there to the configuration of Sakhalin, Hokkaido and Honshu on a
>> modern map. The depiction of "Hokkaido" and "Honshu" is particularly
>> interesting because the peninsula at the west end of the real Hokkaido,
>> separated from Honshu by the strait Tsugaru Kaikyo, appears to have been
>> detached from the V.M.  "Hokkaido" and used to elongate "Honshu"
>northward.
>
>Since the map falls apart with regard to accuracy south of the horn of
>Africa and west of the Persian Gulf I suspect that the islands shown are
>more likely supposed to be the spice islands, not Japan. -the Troll

If the map is medieval, that could be true. But I was speaking of a
resemblance, not of what they were meant to represent.

And here's another thing about the comparison between the Vinland Map and
the Andrea Bianco map: unlike the famous islands in the North Atlantic,
these three islands occupy space on the Vinland Map which is occupied by
part of the Asian mainland on the Bianco map. Specifically, two peninsulas
on the Bianco map have been partly redrawn, leaving just their tips as the
basis for "Honshu" and "Hokkaido", while "Sakhalin" is simply carved out of
the coastline, with its north-east coast following the curve of the
abandoned frame. Why? Unlike the addition of Iceland etc., it's certainly
not a geographical improvement.

David B