Did ancient civilizations ever orient their maps in ways other than north-up?

by TheVegetaMonologues
Mictlantecuhtli

Not so ancient, but the 1540 map of Nueva Galicia is orientated with East being up.

Cyrus47

One such example you might find interesting is the Tabula Rogeriana [Warning: Massive Image], made by al-Idrisi for the Norman King of Sicily Roger II in 1154. This map was originally south-up as you see it in the link.

Here is a smaller image for if the other link is too cumbersome. It loses the essence of the map though, which is the detail.

Searocksandtrees

hi! you'll find more examples in the FAQ