Hello folks,

I'm a California chap in my mid-twenties, and am very glad to be here! I was overjoyed to stumble upon this forum community this morning while researching a map commission for a client. I have only drawn a few maps in my time but have always been fascinated by historical cartography. My lifelong interest in medieval European history has led me to earn a degree in history from San Francisco State University (2012) and currently I'm working odd jobs while waiting for a ripe moment to return to graduate school. I'm currently in the process of starting a crafts business called Gerhard's Fineries that focuses on recreating medieval wood and leather wares but I also entertain fanciful commission work. I posted two maps in the "Finished Maps" forum this morning. Here they be:

Leather reproduction of Thror's Map from The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien

Hand-Drawn Map of Medieval China

And for anyone interested more generally in the sort of work I do, here's a Flickr account with various project posts. I plan to make a proper website come late Summer, by which time I should have enough of a portfolio to justify its inception!

Gerhard's Fineries Flickr Gallery

Once again, really lovely to be here. I'm fascinated by the various design programs that many of the members use to make the wonderful maps that are displayed. Having always been an ink, paint and carving knife kind of guy it may be fun to try out a new approach! I'll have to wander over to the software forum now... Cheers!

-Gerhard von Liebau