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Old maps are littered with islands that have vanished. What happened to these strange and unexplainable lost lands? Did they ever exist in the first place?
These imaginary landmasses are called “phantom islands.” The strange cartographic features pop up for a number of reasons. Sometimes these nonexistent landmasses come about because of mistakes made by sailors or cartographers; other times they can be traced back to folklore or legends. And sometimes, there’s an optical illusion at play.
On this episode of The List Show, host and Mental Floss editor-in-chief Erin McCarthy covers all manner of phantom islands, from lands supposedly spotted by famous explorers to the Isle of Demons. To learn more, check out the full episode, and subscribe to Mental Floss on YouTube for new videos every week.
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