Messa
- Modern name
- Massa
- Modern country
- Morocco
- Coordinates
- 30.0, -9.64
Messa: A minor port along the west African coast north of Cape Bojador, at the outlet of the Massa River. This is the last port Dati mentions in his list of west African ports before he notes the existence of the Canary Islands and returns his focus to the Mediterranean: "Beyond Messa... there is nothing but vast desert" (4.4.3–5). Note that Messa (Morocco) is different from both Messina (Italy) and Messi (Anatolia).
The toponym Messa appears in La Sfera in the following places:
Click on any citation to view it in context in the edition.
Map of the location P089
Variant spellings of Messa in Sfera manuscripts
| Variant | Manuscripts |
|---|---|
| M[...] | Cors2 |
| massa | He3 |
| me[ssa] | Tre |
| mei | Laur5 |
| mel | Bal |
| mensa | Fn3, Magl4 |
| Merssi | Ashb6 |
| mes[...] | Con4, Ricc12 |
| mess[...] | Pad1 |
| messa | Con1, Cs1, He2, Laur3, Marc1, Med2, NB, Pal5, Pal6, Par1, Per2, Pnc5, Ricc15 |
| Messa | Clas2, Con3, Fn9, Fo, Magl2, Marc2, Morg, Parm2, Pnc4 |
| Messe | Cap1 |
| Messea | NYPL2, Ricc17 |
| messi | Ashb3, Med3, NYPL3 |
| Messi | MB |
| MESSI | Wie1 |
| messo | ME2 |
| missa | Ricc8 |
| mssa | Pal8 |
- Suggested citation
- Beneš, Carrie. “Messa.” Gregorio Dati’s La sfera = The Globe: A Digital Edition, May 3, 2026. https://la-sfera-staging-a8db029690a6.herokuapp.com/toponyms/messa/.