Both maps below show Iraq highlighted. The old Mercator map (1569) inflates Iraq about 1.4× at 33°, and the new Equal Earth map shows it at its true 438,317 km². Pan or zoom either map and the other follows, so the difference is visible at every scale.
That 1.4× inflation is why Iraq dominated old schoolbook maps and maps of the world's great powers. Hover Iraq on either map to highlight it on both at once, then compare it with Greenland.
Iraq: key figures
| True area | On the old Mercator map | Distortion vs truth |
|---|
| Iraq | 438,317 km² | 623,287 km² | 1.4× |
| Greenland | 2,166,086 km² | 25,576,494 km² | 11.8× |
| Africa | 30,370,000 km² | n/a | n/a |
Old maps drew Iraq at about 623,287 km². The truth is 438,317 km², a difference of 42% that school atlases carried for centuries.