Read the following excerpt from a history of maritime cartography:
"Although sixteenth-century Venetian cartographers routinely attributed the high precision of portolan charts to superior magnetic compass calibration, modern archival analysis reveals that this accuracy stemmed primarily from the systematic cross-referencing of standardized mariners' logbooks, which compensated for localized magnetic declination errors that individual navigators could not independently calculate."
Based on the passage, which of the following can be properly inferred regarding sixteenth-century Venetian cartographers?
- They held an inaccurate belief regarding the primary cause of the high precision found in portolan charts.Answer
- BThey relied on individual navigators to independently calculate localized magnetic declination before compiling chart data.
- CThey intentionally misrepresented their mapping techniques to prevent competing European cartographers from copying their logbook synthesis methods.
- DThey abandoned the use of magnetic compasses after discovering logbook cross-referencing yielded superior precision.
- EThey were unable to produce accurate portolan charts without first standardizing the design of mariners' magnetic compasses.
Answer
Sixteenth-century Venetian cartographers held an inaccurate belief regarding the primary cause of the precision of portolan charts.
The sentence explicitly contrasts what cartographers 'attributed' chart precision to (compass calibration) with what modern analysis shows was the 'primary' cause (logbook cross-referencing). This directly supports the deduction that the cartographers were mistaken about why their charts were so precise.
Step-by-Step Solution
Key Concept
Single-Sentence Inferences