Historical map projections have generally underestimated the size of Africa. This map from the Economist shows just how geographically big the continent is compared with other parts of the world.
Matthew Farmer's insight:
This is a thought-provoking image. On the one-hand it shows the sheer vastness and opportunity that exists within Africa. However, it also illustrates the difficulty of administrating an area of this size (it's no wonder the African Union has challenges) and the how overly-simplistic and naïve it is to consider Africa as one place. There is inevitably so much diversity in an area this size!