Italy 1815

     In 1990 Italy issued a stamp commemorating the centenary of the Società Dante Alighieri. The design has a portrait of Dante, an open book, possibly representing the Divina Commedia, and a globe. Dante lived from 1265 to 1321; the earliest globe was made by Martin Behaim in 1492, nearly two hundred years later. I do not know what connection the globe has with Dante, so at this point it appears to be an error.
     Also, the globe shows Europe and Asia, the Antarctic and Australia. Apart from Europe the maps of the continents reflect discoveries much later than Dante, and further, the northwestern part of Asia is misshapen, and the Antarctic continent is too far North.

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