Both maps below show Germany highlighted. The old Mercator map (1569) inflates Germany about 2.5× at 51°, and the new Equal Earth map shows it at its true 357,581 km². Pan or zoom either map and the other follows, so the difference is visible at every scale.
That 2.5× inflation is why Germany dominated old schoolbook maps and maps of the world's great powers. Hover Germany on either map to highlight it on both at once, then compare it with Greenland.
Germany: key figures
| True area | On the old Mercator map | Distortion vs truth |
|---|
| Germany | 357,581 km² | 904,859 km² | 2.5× |
| Greenland | 2,166,086 km² | 25,576,494 km² | 11.8× |
| Africa | 30,370,000 km² | n/a | n/a |
Old maps drew Germany at about 904,859 km². The truth is 357,581 km², a difference of 153% that school atlases carried for centuries.