Fantasy maps and mapmaking tutorials by Jonathan Roberts
The Free City of Braavos lies at the North Western tip of Essos, directly across the Narrow Sea from the Vale, and North East of King’s Landing. Here’s a map to orient Braavos to the rest of the events in Game of Thrones.
This is a sketch, based on the maps of Lands of Ice and Fire, but with just the core locations of interest pulled out.
The last map from the Lands of Ice and Fire is the map of Journeys – all the paths taken by the characters in the novels of A Song of Ice and Fire (up to the end of Dances with Dragons). This map contains spoilers, so don’t look too carefully if you’ve not read to the end of A Dance With Dragons.
Westeros is the beating heart of A Song of Ice and Fire. In this map Westeros gets its own official map in the form of a 3 foot by 2 foot poster. Continue reading “The Official Map of Westeros”
King’s Landing, heart of power in Westeros, location of the Iron Throne. This city acts as the fulcrum for the plots and machinations of the warring factions of the Seven Kingdoms. This map is something of a dichotomy. It contains more detail than any of the world or regional maps, but fewer named locations. To see the high resolution version, you’ll need to pick up the poster map folio – The Lands of Ice and Fire – but if you want to see some detail shots, read on after the jump. Continue reading “King’s Landing”
Here’s the first official world map of Game of Thrones, which I was commissioned to illustrated for the Lands of Ice and Fire poster set for Random House. The Song of Ice and Fire is an epic series, and it was a privilege to create the map of the known world for the first time.
It was a dream commission for me. I originally read the books in college and, like so many others, was absorbed by the rich world. The lack of good maps bothered me, but I assumed that some day they would be created. I never expected I’d be the one to do it.
Continue reading “Official World Map of A Song of Ice and Fire”
I ran across this video from Random House the other day. It’s the best preview I’ve seen out there of the maps I illustrated of the world of Game of Thrones.
Also, everything should be narrated by this guy. He could make the opening of the humblest letter sound Epic.
It’s official! I am working on the maps for A Song of Ice and Fire by George RR Martin. The image above is an early mockup of the cover and the full map folio is due to come out in October of this year. Now obviously I can’t say too much about the project, but here’s the description from the product page:
George R. R. Martin’s beloved Song of Ice and Fire series, which started with A Game of Thrones, is bursting with a variety and richness of landscapes—from bitter tundra to arid wasteland and everything in between—that provide a sense of scale unrivaled in contemporary fantasy. Now this dazzling set of maps, featuring original artwork from illustrator and cartographer Jonathan Roberts, transforms Martin’s epic saga into a world as fully realized as the one around us. Continue reading “The Lands of Ice and Fire”