Clarity.

The evolution of sixteenth-century maps clearly reflects the Europeans' expanding knowledge of the world around them. No longer were questions regarding the breadth of the Atlantic Ocean or the size and relative positions of the earth's major continents matters of simple speculation. Nor did sixteenth-century geographers or navigators feel compelled to consult the texts of ancient authorities on such matters. Instead cartographers increasingly based their representations of the world on concrete data and empirical observation. In addition they developed new, more-accurate methods of portraying the three-dimensional globe on flat, two-dimensional surfaces. It is true that problems such as the inability of navigators and chartmakers to measure longitude accurately while at sea continued to lead to some distortion and imprecision in European maps of the era. Nonetheless, in terms of the general outlines and relative positions of the oceans...