The first maps were scratched or cut onto pieces of stone or drawn on clay tablets using natural pigments from plants.

Manuscripts

• In ancient times maps were drawn on animal skin called vellum or parchment. Vellum was made from calfskin and parchment was made from sheep or goat's skin. The skin was cleaned, dried and stretched. Animal skin was a good choice as when it was treated it was thin, smooth and long lasting.
• About 5,000 years ago the ancient Egyptians were using Papyrus which was an early form of paper made from the papyrus plant which grew in the Nile Delta.
• Paper was invented by the Chinese about 100 years after the birth of Christ (100 A.D.)  Manuscript maps were each made individually as there was no means of copying them.

Printing

The advent of printing was of huge importance to map making as it meant that multiple copies of a map could be produced without each copy having to be drawn and coloured by hand.

• Woodblock printing was used up to the early 1500's. This involved a design (map) being cut into a piece of wood. Ink was put onto the wood which was then pressed onto the paper or material the map was printed on.
• Engraving was a method used to print maps up until the late 1800s. Instead of wood, the map was carved into a piece of metal and then ink was applied. The paper was then pressed with great force onto the metal and a copy of the map was made. Being pressed so hard onto the metal left marks around the edge of the paper and these "platemarks" are a way of identifying original old maps from photocopies.
• Etching. Instead of cutting a design into metal, acid was used to etch or erode a design into a piece of metal such as zinc. Ink was then put onto the metal and used to print maps.
• Modern printing methods have made the mass production of maps very easy. Printing companies can print huge numbers of maps a day, something that the original map makers drawing maps onto animal skin could not even have dreamt of.