portolano
Americannoun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of portolano
1855–60; < Italian: shipmaster's guidebook; earlier, harbor master < Medieval Latin portulānus. See port 1, -ule, -an
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
"A comparison of the contours of the Mediterranean, according to various portolanos, with a modern chart, shows that the normal portolano contained no mistake due to the misdirection of the compass."
From The Chronicle of the Discovery and Conquest of Guinea Vol. II by Zurara, Gomes Eannes de
The makers of the better class of portolani evidently had the use of the compass in drawing their charts.
From American Nation: a history — Volume 1: European Background of American History, 1300-1600 by Cheyney, Edward Potts
Just at the beginning of the fourteenth century, however, a new line was struck out in map-making by the construction and steady development of sailing charts, or "portolani."
From American Nation: a history — Volume 1: European Background of American History, 1300-1600 by Cheyney, Edward Potts
Nor do the earliest portolani contain any compass-roses or wind-roses.
From The Chronicle of the Discovery and Conquest of Guinea Vol. II by Zurara, Gomes Eannes de
Strictly scientific map-making begins with the Mediterranean portolani.
From The Chronicle of the Discovery and Conquest of Guinea Vol. II by Zurara, Gomes Eannes de
Many names here occurring are, however, not to be found on the portolanos of the fourteenth century....
From The Chronicle of the Discovery and Conquest of Guinea Vol. II by Zurara, Gomes Eannes de
"A comparison of the contours of the Mediterranean, according to various portolanos, with a modern chart, shows that the normal portolano contained no mistake due to the misdirection of the compass."
From The Chronicle of the Discovery and Conquest of Guinea Vol. II by Zurara, Gomes Eannes de
In itself, the Dieppese story is not impossible, and we shall see in another section, from the witness of the Map of 1351 and other portolanos, how plausible it appears, together with still greater ventures.
From The Chronicle of the Discovery and Conquest of Guinea Vol. II by Zurara, Gomes Eannes de
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
