Lopo Homem (c. 1497 - c. 1572) was a 16th-century Portuguese cartographer and cosmographer based in Lisbon and best known for his work on the Miller Atlas.

Biography

Homem is estimated to have been born c. 1497, possibly into a noble family. He is known to have spent time in Azamor between 1520 and 1522 and in Lisbon in 1565. Beginning in 1517, he served as the crown's official cartographer and was given exclusive rights to "constructing and correcting... nautical compasses." If anyone else attempted to calibrate a ship, they were required to pay Homem, the Master of Nautical Instruments, 20 cruzados. These rights and titles were renewed in 1524 by King João III of Portugal. In 1524, Homem was involved in preliminary negotiations on behalf of the Portuguese crown as an expert witness at the Conferences of Badajoz-Elvas, which aimed to settle a dispute with Castile for the Molucca Islands. For this, he was given a pension of 1200 reais. A letter written by Lopo Homem alluding to the board quarrels over the claims of the two kings on exploration rights remains in the Torre do Tombo. Homem's earliest known work is a world map, which was discovered in London in 1930. His best-known work is the Miller Atlas, dated 1519, which is thought to be a joint work with Pedro Reinel, Reinel's son Jorge, and António de Holanda. There is, however, some disagreement in the academic community, with others arguing that Homem and de Holanda were the only two who worked on it. The Miller Atlas consists of eight maps over six sheets painted on both sides. It was created using information both from Homem's imagination and from known land masses dating back to Ptolemy. Because of its "luxurious" work and detail, it is thought that King Manuel I of Portugal commissioned it as a state gift for Francis I of France. Homem and the Reineles were the only known cartographers in Lisbon at this time, allowing them to entirely corner the market. In the mid-16th century, Homem criticized inaccurate maps, both for "damag[ing] the geopolitical interests of the Crown... [which] could cause significant territorial losses" and for increasing the probability of shipwrecks and sailor deaths. In 1531, Lopo Homem was given a lifetime pension of 20,000 reais.

Works

Homem's known works, dated between 1557 and 1578, include 11 or 12 charts and 12 atlases; 7 of the atlases were of Europe and the Mediterranean Sea and 5 were of the world. These include:

Family

He had at least 4 sons: Diogo and André, both cartographers; Thomas; and António.