Old maps indicate Greenland was ice-free just 500 years ago

JGeropoulas

The Living Force
When you look at Greenland on Google Maps, it's completely flat - just white. No mountains, no terrain, nothing. But old maps from the 1500s and 1600s show something completely different.In this video, we're looking at historical maps that show Greenland with green land, channels, even trees. Maps from Mercator in 1570, Coronelli in 1592, and several others all show detailed terrain that doesn't exist on any modern mapping service. Scientists say the ice there is over a million years old, but these maps suggest otherwise.We'll also explore the mystery of an east-west canal that appears on multiple historical maps, the strange expedition route of Fridtjof Nansen in 1888, and what might be revealed as Greenland's ice continues to melt at record rates.

 
Just saw the same video and it basically boils down to the question what those medieval maps were based on.

The channel through Greenland was likely based on an old Norwegian chronicle that Mercator and other cartographers mentioned as a source. Though the chronicle does not really talk about a channel crossing Greenland:

The Key Source: The "Historia Norwegiæ" (History of Norway)​

While not a saga in the traditional literary sense, this Latin chronicle (c. 1200-1300 AD) provides the most direct reference to a possible "channel." It states:

"Moreover, Greenland’s western region is traversed by a channel which is called ad montes ['to the mountains' or possibly a place-name]. It runs north under the icecaps (sub glacie)."

This is the closest any medieval Norse source comes to describing a channel cutting through Greenland.

It might have been a subglacial meltwater river exit they saw during the Medieval warm period.
 
Bumping this very interesting topic!

(The following came to mind: "Green" + "land")

Thank you @JGeropoulas for the video; I found it very interesting, especially in its aspects that have been discussing in many threads; it combines several of those:
  • after/ during / before a cataclysmic event
  • ice
  • land masses
That is because many very important cosmic events have been reshaping our planet, so our conditions - and, meanwhile, we are bound to believe that it's all about "economy" & things. The author in the video provides the critical bit:

"Main stream scientists rely on the fact that big impacting events are framed in a million, if not billion, of years - timeframe. What we suspect is that it's merely a matter of centuries."

That would be the matter: people are not watching at the sky, because their world view implies that such "danger" (or "possibility") - is a matter of eons. Thus, we are not attaching enough importance to cosmic events as "factors". What remains? The factors are "economy", "political battles, wars. That would be what the world views factor in as elements susceptible of altering our experience & reality.

Well - cosmic events seem to be THE game changer overall.

@axj, out of curiosity, it seems that you have done some research on this topic - you end up with the info that the maps have been drawn by people who inspired themselves on the Norvegian text: can we confirm this? Namely, that the drawers exclusively rely on one text?
 
Greenland was occupied during the medieval warm period. There are archaeological finds of farms that were buried by ice when the little ice age began. Greenland: Once a Viking paradise
The maps could be based on older maps and chronicles. They are not necessarily indicative of the geography at the exact moment they were drawn.
One things that came to mind is that while the artist would be drawing the map, it would be a long process. It can be that when the artist started, the land was all-green, and then ice arrived. (It can be, too, that the drawing of maps were collective efforts, could be, spanning one century before finalization - not sure)
 
@axj, out of curiosity, it seems that you have done some research on this topic - you end up with the info that the maps have been drawn by people who inspired themselves on the Norvegian text: can we confirm this? Namely, that the drawers exclusively rely on one text?
They did not rely on one text, but there is only one we know of (and that the cartographers gave as a source) that mentions any kind of channel in Greenland. There are other texts they mention as sources that are lost now and we do not know the contents of.

"Main stream scientists rely on the fact that big impacting events are framed in a million, if not billion, of years - timeframe. What we suspect is that it's merely a matter of centuries."
That is definitely true, but there seems to be no evidence of any impact melting Greenland ice sheets in the last few thousand years. And it would not stay deglaciated after an impact.

It is possible that some very ancient maps that the Medieval cartographers referenced showed an ice-free Greenland from Atlantean times - if the Atlanteans defrosted it like Antarctica.

The idea is that these ancient maps were passed down through Ancient Egypt, the Library of Alexandria and then to Constaninople and Europe. Some of the earliest medieval world maps seem to show Sundaland as it existed during the ice age, instead of the Indonesian islands, for example.
 
They did not rely on one text, but there is only one we know of (and that the cartographers gave as a source) that mentions any kind of channel in Greenland. There are other texts they mention as sources that are lost now and we do not know the contents of.
Hello! Thank you for the explanations.

If so, an angle would be than to focus on "physical expeditions" as in "a team of people going there", etc.

It's absurd to think that no one explored that location, that recently. Could be, some Scandinavian sources.

That is definitely true, but there seems to be no evidence of any impact melting Greenland ice sheets in the last few thousand years. And it would not stay deglaciated after an impact.

Yes, I see the matter: during YD, the snow accumulated at the poles (Mars interaction) - and it remained like that up to today.

It is possible that some very ancient maps that the Medieval cartographers referenced showed an ice-free Greenland from Atlantean times - if the Atlanteans defrosted it like Antarctica.

The idea is that these ancient maps were passed down through Ancient Egypt, the Library of Alexandria and then to Constaninople and Europe. Some of the earliest medieval world maps seem to show Sundaland as it existed during the ice age, instead of the Indonesian islands, for example.

This is very interesting, thank you.

I am not skilled enough so as to say anything, so I approached the matter in terms of the video. We surely end up with the concept that Greenland was green during the minimas - and it would be (perhaps!) one matter here

I appreciate (as in "enjoy") the idea that there is a strong emphasis of a modern green Greenland, but am sensitive to a possibility of it being ice-covered at that time.

The ancient maps would make sense.

I suppose that we would need to double-check on the brown dwarf effects, during the minimas, and find out the exact scopes of the ice age.

Another thing that comes to mind is that the YD featured a recombination of land masses. This is something that we had the opportunity to discuss here Pre "Younger Dryas" Map of Earth and I was wondering if there wouldn't be a possibility, in terms of land mass recombination. I suppose that the only thing would be that the brown dwarf exerted a pressure of some sort, specifically altering Greenland mass.

Sorry that the latter idea is very shallow. It's just a take from an open mind in terms of the basic "cosmic stuff = land mass recombination" 😅 Well - "usually those things happen when ...". But I agree that this may not be the case.

So I understand that your verdict, as of now, is something akin to "not super probable" - "probable" - "but we've got elements pointing out to another direction"?

I would feel, with your post, that it's not excluded but that this would require several elements. What would be those?!

:thup:
 
If so, an angle would be than to focus on "physical expeditions" as in "a team of people going there", etc.

It's absurd to think that no one explored that location, that recently. Could be, some Scandinavian sources.
Scandinavians visited and lived in Greenland in the early medieval period when it was warmer.

We surely end up with the concept that Greenland was green during the minimas - and it would be (perhaps!) one matter here
The minima came after the early Medieval warm period and caused colder weather. The Maunder Minimum is known as the "mini ice age".

I suppose that the only thing would be that the brown dwarf exerted a pressure of some sort, specifically altering Greenland mass.
There is no evidence of such largescale continental changes just a few hundred years ago.
 
Scandinavians visited and lived in Greenland in the early medieval period when it was warmer.


The minima came after the early Medieval warm period and caused colder weather. The Maunder Minimum is known as the "mini ice age".


There is no evidence of such largescale continental changes just a few hundred years ago.

Thank you!

If I understand well, the idea is that during the Spoerer minimum, Greenland was "habitable" but almost covered with ice. It's because the Spoerer is close to the early medieval warm period - while the Mauder was representative of "ice age".

1420 to 1570, still habitable?

(

In reference to

Session 1 November 2025

Another confirmation is that the Spoerer Minimum (1420-1570) and Dalton Minimum (1790-1820), which came before and after the Maunder Minimum (1645-1715), can be explained with the entry and exit of the brown dwarf into and out of the heliosphere of the Sun:
Solar Minima Timeline and Brown Dwarf Passage
Heliosphere Shape:

The Sun's heliosphere is not a sphere. It is a teardrop shape due to the Sun's motion through the galaxy.
The Nose (short side, ~120 AU) points toward the constellation Hercules.
The Tail (long side, >350 AU) stretches out in the opposite direction.
The Flanks (sides) are at intermediate distances.
Historical Solar Minima:

Spoerer Minimum (midpoint c. 1505 CE) - HELIOSPHERE ENTRY

Entry: The brown dwarf entered from the direction of Cygnus (on the tailward flank).
Distance: It crossed the heliopause at approximately 187 AU.
Maunder Minimum (midpoint c. 1678 CE) - CLOSEST APPROACH
Location: The brown dwarf reached its perihelion at approximately 40 AU near the constellations Gemini/Orion.
This was the period of deepest solar inactivity.
Dalton Minimum (midpoint c. 1805 CE) - HELIOSPHERE EXIT
Exit: The brown dwarf exited toward the direction of Auriga (on the noseward flank).
Distance: It crossed the heliopause at approximately 156 AU.
Conclusion:
The proposed flyby created a ~300-year transit through the heliosphere. The timing of its entry (187 AU), closest approach (40 AU), and exit (156 AU) aligns precisely with the three historically observed periods of suppressed solar activity, providing a potential unified explanation for these events.
)
 
1420 to 1570, still habitable?
Why don't you simply look up that information? The Inuit continued living in Greenland, while the Norse settlements were abandoned around 1350 to 1450 after living there since about 1000 AD.
 
The maps could be based on older maps and chronicles. They are not necessarily indicative of the geography at the exact moment they were drawn
This is what I thought when I read the title of the thread, that they are reproductions of older maps.

I believe that in the session where the Piri Reis map is discussed It was said to be a reproduction of an older map.

If I find the session, I will contribute it.
 
I only found two sessions with Piri Reis, and the most relevant one is the following:

December 5, 1998

Q: (L) In that sense... (A) Okay, this brings us to the question about the Piri Reis map. We wanted to know the origin of this map?

A: Complex, but the origin would date back to 14,000 B.C.

Q:
(A) Atlantis?

A: Close.

Q: (L) Was this map drawn when Antarctica was NOT covered by ice?

A: Yes.

(...)

And science says that:

In 1929, a map drawn in 1513 by the Ottoman cartographer Piri Reis was discovered in Istanbul.
 
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