REPRESENTACIONES DEL ESPACIO PATAGóNICO: UNA INTERPRETACIóN DE LA CARTOGRAFíA JESUíTICA DE LOS SIGLOS XVII Y XVIII

jesuit cartography serves as an exceptional sourcefor gaining access to the ways of production and use of the geographical and cartographic knowledge related to the southern borders of the spanish empire. taking into account that the maps produced by the missionaries from the society ofjesus were the first to explicitly incorporate the spatial knowledge of the local inhabitants, we examined the conditions for collecting information, the strategiesfor appropriation and organization ofindigenous lore and the reconciliation ofdifferent spatial conceptions and representations upon producing the map. considering the use made of the jesuit production, we have identified the main beneficiaries from this intimate knowledge. at the present study we examine the general maps ofpatagonia produced by alonso de ovalle (1646), josé cardiel (1746-1747, 1749y 1751) and thomas falkner (1772).