Both maps below show Libya highlighted. The old Mercator map (1569) inflates Libya about 1.3× at 27°, and the new Equal Earth map shows it at its true 1,759,540 km². Pan or zoom either map and the other follows, so the difference is visible at every scale.
That 1.3× inflation is why Libya dominated old schoolbook maps and maps of the world's great powers. Hover Libya on either map to highlight it on both at once, then compare it with Greenland.
Libya: key figures
| True area | On the old Mercator map | Distortion vs truth |
|---|
| Libya | 1,759,540 km² | 2,217,020 km² | 1.3× |
| Greenland | 2,166,086 km² | 25,576,494 km² | 11.8× |
| Africa | 30,370,000 km² | n/a | n/a |
Old maps drew Libya at about 2,217,020 km². The truth is 1,759,540 km², a difference of 26% that school atlases carried for centuries.