When maps and caricatures collide

The golden age of the comic and serio-comic maps extends from the middle of the nineteenth century to the dawn of the Second World War. Spurred by revolutions and wars, satirists and cartoonists channelled the contemporary political climate into maps that transformed countries into a variety of stereotypes, often in the form of animals and parodied political figures. The clever and witty exchanges between these caricatured figures on the map offered an entertaining visual representation of current events that had a broad appeal. These caricature maps carry two distinct yet intertwined functions – to educate us with their insightful depictions of political relationships while also entertaining us by presenting these relationships in a humorous way.