Bernard J.S. Cahill
Encyclopedia
B.J.S. Cahill cartographer and architect
, was the inventor of the octahedral "Butterfly Map" (published 1909; patented 1913); an early proponent of the San Francisco Civic Center
(1899-1909); and designer of the Columbarium of San Francisco
.
His Butterfly World Map, like Buckminster Fuller
's later Dymaxion Map
of 1943 and 1954, enabled all continents to be uninterrupted, and with reasonable fidelity to a globe. Cahill demonstrated this principle by also inventing a rubber-ball globe which could be flattened under a pane of glass in the "Butterfly" form, then return to its ball shape.
By Cahill
Architect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
, was the inventor of the octahedral "Butterfly Map" (published 1909; patented 1913); an early proponent of the San Francisco Civic Center
Civic Center, San Francisco, California
The Civic Center in San Francisco, California, is an area of a few blocks north of the intersection of Market Street and Van Ness Avenue that contains many of the city's largest government and cultural institutions. It has two large plazas and a number of buildings in classical architectural style...
(1899-1909); and designer of the Columbarium of San Francisco
Columbarium of San Francisco
The Neptune Society Columbarium of San Francisco is a repository for human ashes owned and operated by the Neptune Society of Northern California, at One Loraine Court, near Stanyan and Anza Streets, just north of Golden Gate Park in San Francisco, California. Built in 1898 by architect Bernard...
.
His Butterfly World Map, like Buckminster Fuller
Buckminster Fuller
Richard Buckminster “Bucky” Fuller was an American systems theorist, author, designer, inventor, futurist and second president of Mensa International, the high IQ society....
's later Dymaxion Map
Dymaxion map
The Dymaxion map or Fuller map is a projection of a world map onto the surface of a polyhedron, which can be unfolded and flattened to two dimensions. The projection depicts the earth's continents as "one island," or nearly contiguous land masses. The arrangement heavily interrupts the map in order...
of 1943 and 1954, enabled all continents to be uninterrupted, and with reasonable fidelity to a globe. Cahill demonstrated this principle by also inventing a rubber-ball globe which could be flattened under a pane of glass in the "Butterfly" form, then return to its ball shape.
External links
About Cahill- Parry, David, "Architects' Profiles: Pacific Heights Architects #30 - Bernard J. S. Cahill". Includes photograph of Cahill.
- Bernard J. S. Cahill Collection, ca. 1889-1938 (Environmental Design Archives. College of Environmental Design. University of California, Berkeley. Berkeley, California)
- Online guide to the Bernard Joseph Stanislaus Cahill Papers, The Bancroft Library
- Furuti, Carlos, Map Projections: Polyhedral Maps
- Keyes, Gene, B.J.S. Cahill Butterfly Map Resource Page
By Cahill
- "An Account of a New Land Map of the World" (The Scottish Geographical Magazine, 1909-09) p. 449-469 [reproduced in 21 jpegs] The first publication and exposition of the Butterfly Map.
- "Map of the World" Washington, DC: United States Patent Office, 1913-02-25; filed 1912-03-05
- "Geographic Globe" (US Patent 1081207, 1913: rubber-ball globe which can flatten to a Butterfly Map, or return to ball shape.)
- "Projections for World Maps" (1929) —continued in separate pdf:— "A New Map for Meteorologists: Equally Suitable for Small Areas, Continents, Hemispheres or the Entire World" – both from Monthly Weather Review, 57/4, 1929-04) p. 128-133; illus.
- "One Base Map in Place of Five" (1940) Monthly Weather Review, 68/2, 1940-02, p.4; 1 illus.