How the Indian Ocean was invented

What do we know about the Indian Ocean? It was not the result of an extraordinary discovery but rather of successive explorations and exchanges between the civilizations of the West and the East. Historians trace the history of its representation through the study of nautical charts from Antiquity to the 18th century. They thus show us that the narrative of its fabrication is strongly linked to its representation and that the maps have thus contributed to giving this ocean its meaning and consistency over time.