Both maps below show Ireland highlighted. The old Mercator map (1569) inflates Ireland about 2.8× at 53°, and the new Equal Earth map shows it at its true 70,273 km². Pan or zoom either map and the other follows, so the difference is visible at every scale.
That 2.8× inflation is why Ireland dominated old schoolbook maps and maps of the world's great powers. Hover Ireland on either map to highlight it on both at once, then compare it with Greenland.
Ireland: key figures
| True area | On the old Mercator map | Distortion vs truth |
|---|
| Ireland | 70,273 km² | 195,499 km² | 2.8× |
| Greenland | 2,166,086 km² | 25,576,494 km² | 11.8× |
| Africa | 30,370,000 km² | n/a | n/a |
Old maps drew Ireland at about 195,499 km². The truth is 70,273 km², a difference of 178% that school atlases carried for centuries.